HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3945        FILED ON: 2/19/2021

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 1448

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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PRESENTED BY:

Andres X. Vargas and 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 production.

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PETITION OF:

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3945        FILED ON: 2/19/2021

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 1448

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 production.

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 5 of Chapter 40A of the General Laws, as so appearing, is amended by inserting in paragraph 5 the following after ””in accordance with section 3 of chapter 40R.”:-

(5) an inclusionary zoning ordinance or bylaw.

SECTION 2. Chapter 23A of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding the following section:-

Section 68. In order to meet the housing needs of the Commonwealth, there is hereby established a statewide goal of producing 427,000 new units of housing in Massachusetts by 2040. The housing production goal shall also include a goal of having 85,400 units of housing created by 2040 that are affordable to households earning less than 80% of the Area Median Income, with at least 8,500 of these affordable units for households earning less than 30 percent of the Area Median Income.

The secretary of housing and economic development shall report annually to the clerks of the house of representatives and the senate, who shall forward the report to the house of representatives and the senate, the chairs of the joint committee on housing, and the chairs of the senate and house committee on ways and means, on progress made towards meeting these housing production goals. The report shall include a breakdown of market-rate units created; units created that are accessible or adaptable for persons with disabilities; units created for persons over the age of 55; and units created by deed restricted affordable housing available to households earning less than 80% Area Median Income, less than 60% Area Median Income, and less than 30% Area Median Income. The secretary of housing and economic development shall also report annually on the number of residential properties purchased by foreign buyers in Massachusetts. As part of the report, the secretary of housing and economic development shall also include information on short term rentals collected as required by Chapter 337 of the Acts of 2018. The secretary of housing and economic development shall also report annually on the number of units, broken down by municipality, on the Subsidized Housing Inventory as maintained by the Department of Housing and Community Development that are income restricted to income eligible households earning 80% or less than the area median income.

SECTION 3. Chapter 40A, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting the following section:-

Section 18. (a) Any zoning regulations adopted pursuant to Chapter 40A shall allow, as of right and with no minimum parking requirements for dwelling units, mixed-use development or multifamily housing with a minimum gross density of 15 units per acre, subject to any further limitations imposed by section 40 of chapter 131 and title 5 of the state environmental code established pursuant to section 13 of chapter 21A, and be located not more than 0.5 miles from a commuter rail station, subway station, ferry terminal or bus station, if applicable.

(b) Any zoning regulations adopted pursuant to Chapter 40A shall allow, as of right and with no minimum parking requirements for dwelling units, multifamily housing with a minimum gross density of 15 units per acre, subject to any further limitations imposed by section 40 of chapter 131 and title 5 of the state environmental code established pursuant to section 13 of chapter 21A, and be located not more than 0.25 miles from an eligible location.

(c) Any development permitted pursuant to subsections (a) or (b) which includes ten or more residential units shall set aside a minimum of fifteen percent of the residential units to households earning at or below 80% of the Area Median Income or a minimum of ten percent of the residential units to households earning at or below 50% of the Area Median Income as determined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

(f) If a municipality fails to adopt new regulations or amend existing regulations to comply with the provisions of this section by January 1, 2025, any noncompliant existing regulation shall become null and void and such municipality shall approve or deny applications in accordance with the requirements for regulations set forth in the provisions of this section until such municipality adopts or amends a regulation in compliance with this section.

(g) A municipality shall not use or impose standards to discourage through unreasonable costs or delays the development of housing described in this section.

SECTION 4. Section 3 of chapter 40A of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the last paragraph the following 3 paragraphs:-

No zoning ordinance or by-law shall prohibit or require a special permit for the use of land or structures for an accessory dwelling unit, or the rental thereof, in a single-family residential zoning district on a lot with 5,000 square feet or more or on a lot of sufficient area to meet the requirements of title 5 of the state environmental code established by section 13 of chapter 21A.

The use of land or structures for an accessory dwelling unit may be subject to reasonable regulations concerning dimensional setbacks and the bulk and height of structures. Not more than 1 additional parking space shall be required for an accessory dwelling unit.

Nothing in this paragraph shall authorize an accessory dwelling unit to violate the building, fire, health or sanitary codes, historic or wetlands laws, or ordinances or by-laws.

SECTION 5. The secretary of housing and economic development, secretary of energy and environmental affairs, the secretary of transportation, and the executive director of the Massachusetts Development Finance Agency shall jointly submit a report to the joint committee on housing identifying greyfields sites across the commonwealth, options for redevelopment or reuse that may include housing, public use or facilities, mixed use development, or natural restoration and open space, and identify programs within the appropriate state and quasi-public agencies that can be used to support communities in repurposing underutilized land.

For the purposes of this act, the term greyfields may include, but is not limited to, land with development that is outdated, underutilized, failing, or vacant, including commercial, residential, and industrial properties. This term may also include land that is owned by the commonwealth, its agencies, or its political subdivisions.

SECTION 6. Section 34 of Chapter 7C of the General Laws, as so appearing, are hereby amended by inserting the following paragraph:-

(c) Prior to disposition of publicly owned real property of the commonwealth pursuant to chapter 7C, the commissioner of capital asset management and maintenance in coordination with the secretary of the executive office of housing and economic development shall determine whether such real property shall be made available for low or moderate income housing pursuant to this chapter. In making such determination the commissioner and the secretary shall take into account the following factors:

(i) existing zoning that limits the siting of low or moderate income housing in the city or town in which the publicly owned real property is located;

(ii) financial or other deterrents to the production of low or moderate income housing in the city or town in which the real property is located; and

(iii) ensuring that real property for disposition under this chapter is fairly made available to all regions of the commonwealth, including gateway municipalities, rural areas and suburban areas.

Upon making the determination that publicly owned real property shall be made to available for disposition under this chapter, the commissioner and the secretary shall, notwithstanding chapter 7C or any other law to the contrary, declare the property available for development of low or moderate income housing in accordance with this chapter.

SECTION 7. The following section is added to Chapter 40A of the Massachusetts General Laws:-

Section 18. Any commercial property that has been vacant for at least two years may be converted for use as a mixed-use development for multifamily housing. At least 20% of residential units in a mixed-use development built pursuant to this section must be affordable to households earning up to 80% of the area median income as determined annually by the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The affordability of such units shall be assured in perpetuity through the use of an affordable housing restriction.