SENATE DOCKET, NO. 302        FILED ON: 1/14/2015

SENATE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 714

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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PRESENTED BY:

Marc R. Pacheco

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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 expanding the eligibility of households for inclusion in a municipality’s affordable housing inventory.

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PETITION OF:

SENATE DOCKET, NO. 302        FILED ON: 1/14/2015

SENATE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 714

[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
SEE SENATE, NO. 611 OF 2013-2014.]

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 expanding the eligibility of households for inclusion in a municipality’s affordable housing inventory.

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.  For the purposes of this act, “manufactured home” shall mean a structure which is built in conformance to the National Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards, is transportable in 1 or more sections, is 8 body feet or more in width or 40 body feet or more in length in traveling mode or is 320 or more square feet when erected on site, is designed to be used as a dwelling unit with or without a permanent foundation when connected to the required utilities and includes plumbing, heating, air conditioning and electrical systems therein.

SECTION 2.  Notwithstanding any general or special law or rule or regulation to the contrary, the chief executive officer of a municipality may include 50 per cent of the total number of all resident households living in a manufactured home within such municipality as income eligible households solely for the purpose of counting units for certification of such municipality’s affordable housing plan for submission to the department of housing and economic development. The chief executive officer of a municipality shall submit such additional households for inclusion in the municipality’s affordable housing plan on a form designated by the secretary of the department along with any documentation deemed necessary by the secretary to establish that the total number of such manufactured homes within that municipality is accurate. 

The department shall include such households within a municipality’s total number of eligible units for certification, notwithstanding the actual income of such households, upon satisfaction by the department that the number of reported manufactured homes within that municipality is accurate.  

SECTION 3.  The secretary of the housing and community development shall adopt regulations consistent with this act not later than 90 days after its effective date.

SECTION 4.  Section 3 shall take effect upon its passage.  The remainder of this act shall take effect 90 days after the effective date of this act.