Section 5 of chapter 59 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2014 Official Edition, is hereby amended by adding the following clause:-

"Fifty-eighth. Upon the acceptance of this section by a city or town, the board of assessors may grant an abatement of up to 50 per cent of the total tax assessed on a small business’s commercial real estate and personal property if said small business can prove a hardship, with respect to such assessed property, caused by a public works project, or by actions taken by a municipal utility company. Any such abatement shall expire when the hardship ends, or after no more than two consecutive years. The city or town shall establish a maximum number of employees, or maximum gross receipts in the preceding calendar year, for which a small business may be eligible for this abatement. Said small business must apply for such abatement by the one-year anniversary of the end of the actions causing the hardship."