HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3227        FILED ON: 1/18/2013

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 3167

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

_________________

PRESENTED BY:

Joseph F. Wagner

_________________

To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:

The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:

An Act relative to the Chapter 90 program.

_______________

PETITION OF:

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3227        FILED ON: 1/18/2013

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 3167

[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
SEE HOUSE, NO. 3093 OF 2011-2012.]

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

_______________

In the Year Two Thousand Thirteen

_______________

An Act relative to the Chapter 90 program.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

SECTION 1. Subsection (b) of section 4 of chapter 6C of the general laws is hereby amended by striking the entire subsection and inserting the following new subsection:

(b) for expenditure by the department for maintaining, repairing, improving and constructing municipal ways and bridges, sidewalks adjacent to such ways and bridges, bikeways and other projects eligible for funding as a transportation enhancement project as described in the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991, P.L. 102-240, salt storage sheds, bikeways and public use off-street parking facilities related to mass transportation, for engineering services and expenses related to highway transportation enhancement and mass transportation purposes, for care, repair, storage, replacement, purchase and long-term leasing of road building machinery, equipment and tools, for the erection and maintenance of direction signs and warning signs and for necessary or beneficial improvements to unpaved municipal ways together with any money which any municipality may appropriate for such purposes to be used on the same ways, sheds, bikeways, bridges, machinery, equipment, tools and facilities. Such engineering services, including surveying services, shall only be performed by architectural, engineering or surveying firms prequalified by the department; provided, however, that a municipality may seek a waiver of this requirement from the department if the municipality demonstrates to the satisfaction of the department that it is cost prohibitive to use a prequalified firm. Not less than 90 percent of the funds allocated to each municipality pursuant to this subsection shall be shall be used exclusively by said municipality for maintaining, repairing, improving and constructing municipal ways and bridges, sidewalks adjacent to the ways and bridges, bikeways and for design and engineering expenses. The remaining 10 per cent of funds allocated to each said municipality may be used for the purposes described in the previous sentence or for any use allowed pursuant to this subsection. A municipality with a population of less than 10,000 persons according to the most recent United States Census shall be allowed to petition said department for a waiver in the department’s discretion from the percentage limitation. Such ways, sheds, bikeways, bridges, machinery, equipment, tools and facilities shall remain municipal ways, sheds, bikeways, bridges, machinery, equipment, tools and facilities. The department shall send written notification to each municipality advising of the funds apportioned to said municipality for eligible projects no later than April 1 of each year. Each municipality shall submit to the members of the general court a written plan outlining the projects for which such funds shall be applied no later than April 15 of each year, and further, each municipality shall submit to the members of the general court a written report explaining how funds authorized pursuant to this chapter were spent and advising as to the amount, if any, of any unexpended funds no later than December 15 of each year. No revenue credited to the Transportation Fund shall be transferred from said fund to any other fund for any other purpose; provided, however, that such revenue shall be transferred in order to cover fringe benefit costs pursuant to section 5D or subsection (f) of section 6B of chapter 29. The department shall withhold or withdraw the unexpended balance of any funds assigned by it under this clause if the municipality fails to comply with the official standards for traffic control established by the department or with any provision of a traffic control agreement negotiated between the department and the municipality, as required by the United States Secretary of Commerce under section 109 of Title 23 of the United States Code;