HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 890        FILED ON: 1/28/2021

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 1410

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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PRESENTED BY:

Kevin G. Honan

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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 housing service coordinators.

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PETITION OF:

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 890        FILED ON: 1/28/2021

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 1410

[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
SEE HOUSE, NO. 1279 OF 2019-2020.]

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the One Hundred and Ninety-Second General Court
(2021-2022)

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An Act relative to housing service coordinators.

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

Section 38B of Chapter 121B of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2018 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the word ‘program’ in line 12 the following:

There shall also be, subject to appropriation, a program for housing service coordinators to assist residents of privately owned state and federally assisted housing to reduce evictions, increase housing stability, and coordinate residents’ access to opportunities for education, job training, and other services that may increase economic self-sufficiency.

The department of housing and community development, hereinafter the “department”, shall train and certify agencies eligible to provide housing service coordinators and shall develop standard outcome measures by which work shall be assessed.

Property owners who participate in this program shall not file a summary process action for eviction of any subsidized tenant unless the owner certifies on a form approved by the department that the tenant was provided the opportunity to meet with the housing service coordinator a minimum of thirty days before the summary process filing unless problems warranting eviction constitute an immediate threat to the health or safety of any persons at the development, including without limitation residents or staff.

The department shall report quarterly to the house and senate committees on ways and means and the joint committee on housing regarding the number of housing service coordinators, the housing developments where the coordinators are located, and the number of evictions prevented because of service coordinator intervention.

The department may promulgate regulations and guidelines to implement this section.