Notwithstanding any special or general law there shall be a special commission to study the stock and availability of adult disabled housing in the Commonwealth, as well as best practices and costs to construct additional disabled housing in municipalities across the Commonwealth.

The special commission shall consist of: the secretary of housing and economic development, or their designee; the undersecretary of the department of housing and community development, or their designee; a representative of the Massachusetts Housing Partnership; the commissioner of the department of developmental services, or their designee; two members of the House of Representatives, one of whom to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the other to be appointed by the minority leader; two members of the Senate, one of whom to be appointed by the President of the Senate, and the other to be appointed by the minority leader; provided, however, that the first meeting of the commission shall take place not later than December 1, 2017.

The special commission shall submit its recommendations, together with drafts of any legislation, to the clerks of the House of Representatives and the Senate, the chairs of the joint committee on mental health and substance abuse not later than July 1, 2018.