HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3419        FILED ON: 1/16/2015

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 1144

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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PRESENTED BY:

Joseph F. Wagner

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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 reforming the emergency housing assistance program.

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PETITION OF:

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3419        FILED ON: 1/16/2015

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 1144

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the One Hundred and Eighty-Ninth General Court
(2015-2016)

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An Act relative to reforming the emergency housing assistance 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. Section 30 of chapter 23B  of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2012 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the words “just and equitable manner.”, in line 7, the following:-

Whenever a family is provided with temporary shelter under this section, the department shall notify the chief executive officer, as defined in section 7 of chapter 4 of the General Laws, of the municipality in which the shelter is located. This notification shall occur within 72 hours of the family’s placement in the shelter.

SECTION 2. Section 30 of said chapter 23B is hereby further amended by inserting at the end thereof the following:-

(G) The department shall promulgate rules and regulations to ensure that any vendor providing housing to needy families under the emergency housing assistance program complies with the Massachusetts State Sanitary Code, the Massachusetts State Plumbing Code, the Massachusetts State Fuel Gas Code, the Massachusetts State Electrical Code, the Massachusetts State Building Code, and any other state law, regulation or rule governing safe and sanitary housing.

The department shall further adopt a procedure by which a municipal building department, municipal board of health or other municipal official may notify the department of any vendor’s noncompliance with any municipal ordinance, by-law, regulation or rule governing safe and sanitary housing.

The department shall further promulgate a schedule of fines for failure by a vendor to comply with the Massachusetts State Sanitary Code, the Massachusetts State Plumbing Code, the Massachusetts State Fuel Gas Code, the Massachusetts State Electrical Code, the Massachusetts State Building Code, or any other state or municipal law, regulation, ordinance, by-law, or rule governing safe and sanitary housing. The department may impose these fines at the discretion of the director.

No bill submitted under subsection (E) by a noncompliant vendor shall be paid by the department until the noncompliance is corrected.

SECTION 3. Section 3A of chapter 64G of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting at the end thereof the following:-

Notwithstanding section 1 or section 2 of this chapter, or any other general or special law to the contrary, the transfer of occupancy of any room or rooms in a bed and breakfast establishment, hotel, lodging house or motel performed in connection with the emergency housing assistance program authorized under section 30 of chapter 23B shall be subject to the local excise tax imposed by this section.

SECTION 4. Chapter 71 of the General Laws  is hereby amended by inserting after section 7C the following new section:-

Section 7D. The commonwealth shall reimburse cities, towns and regional school districts for the cost of transportation of nonresident pupils as required by the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, Public Law 100-77, as amended, to the full extent of the amounts expended for such transportation. The state treasurer shall annually, on or before November twentieth, pay to eligible cities, towns and regional school districts, subject to appropriation, the sums required for such reimbursement and approved by the commissioner of education.