reglab/housing_qa huggingface dataset:
MA Gen L ch 59 § 52 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 52 - Valuation Lists; Statement of Assessors; Penalties

Section 52. The assessors, or other persons authorized to assess taxes, shall, at the end of said valuation list, subscribe the following statement:  We, the assessors (or other persons so authorized, as the case may be,) of , do severally state, that the foregoing list is a full and true list of the names of all persons known to us, who are liable to taxation in , (here insert the name of the city or town,) during the present year, and that the real and personal estate contained in said list, and assessed upon each person in said list, is a full and accurate assessment upon all the property of each person, liable to taxation, at its full and fair cash value, according to our best knowledge and belief. This statement is made under the penalties of perjury.  Failure to subscribe the foregoing statement shall not invalidate a tax otherwise legally assessed; but whoever assesses taxes in a town without having subscribed the same shall be punished by a fine of ten dollars.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 52a (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 52a - Plans Showing Boundaries in City or Town; Delivery to Court

Section 52A. The assessors, upon receiving for their general use, newly completed or revised plans showing locations of boundaries of real property in the city or town, shall deliver copies of such plans to the land court department of the trial court.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 52b (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 52b - Official Inspection of Valuation Information, Release of Comparable Sales Data

Section 52B. All information collected pursuant to section 8A of chapter 58A and sections 38D, 38E, 57D and 61A of this chapter shall be open to the inspection of the assessors, the commissioner, the deputies, clerks and assistants of either the assessors or the commissioner and such other officials of the commonwealth or of its political subdivisions who have occasion to inspect such information in the performance of their official duties, but to no other person except by order of the appellate tax board or a court, except that if the assessor bases a valuation of an assessed owner's real or personal property, in whole or in part, on a comparable sale, or sales, the assessor shall provide any market data relating to such comparable sale or sales to the assessed owner of the property or his designated representative upon request. Nothing in this section shall prevent a person who submitted that information, or his designated representative, from inspecting or being provided a copy of the submission upon request.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 52c (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 52c - Public Access to Terminals or Other Data Processing Equipment

Section 52C. The provisions of section ten of chapter sixty-six shall not be deemed to authorize public access to terminals or other data processing equipment for the purpose of copying, reading, collecting, printing, analyzing or manipulating any data or other information collected under any provision of this chapter and stored in data processing or computing equipment or to authorize the release of the original or copies of tapes, cards, disc files or other methods of electronic storage of such data or information, unless authorized by the commissioner of revenue.  Nothing contained in this section shall restrict the right of a person assessed or his designated representative to inspect at the assessor's office information and records relating to the valuation and assessment of his property or to receive copies of this information.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 53 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 53 - Tax Lists; Commitment; Warrants; Collector of Taxes

Section 53. The assessors shall, within a reasonable time, commit the tax list with their warrant to the collector of taxes, and, if there is a fire, water, light or improvement district in the town, they shall commit to him a separate list and warrant for the district taxes. If no collector has been chosen, they shall commit such list with their warrants, to a constable; or, if there is no constable, to the sheriff or his deputy; but the assessors of a town shall not commit a tax list to the collector until the bonds of such collector and of the town treasurer have been given and approved as required by law.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 54 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 54 - Tax Lists; Form; Contents

Section 54. The tax list committed to the collector shall be in a form approved by the commissioner and shall contain such data appearing on the assessors' valuation list as may be required for the purposes of sections three and three A of chapter sixty.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 55 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 55 - Warrants; Form; Contents

Section 55. The warrant shall specify the duties of the collector as prescribed by law in the collection of taxes, the times when and the person to whom he shall pay them, shall be substantially in the form heretofore used, and need not be under seal.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 56 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 56 - Lost or Destroyed Warrants

Section 56. If a warrant issued for the collection of taxes is lost or destroyed, the assessors may issue a new warrant therefor, which shall have the same force and effect as the original warrant.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 57a (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 57a - Unpaid Taxes Not in Excess of One Hundred Dollars; Interest

[Section impacted by 2020, 53, Sec. 11, as amended by 2020, 92, Secs. 6, 16 and 17, effective April 3, 2020 relating to the extension of the due date for taxes and the waiver of the payment of interest and other penalty in the event of late payment in order to address disruptions caused by the outbreak of COVID-19.]  Section 57A. In any city or town that accepts this section, notwithstanding sections 23D, 57 or 57C, a notice of preliminary tax or actual tax bill for real estate or personal property taxes, in an amount not in excess of $100, shall be due and payable in 1 installment and if unpaid after the day the first installment of the notice of preliminary tax or actual tax bill for the year is due, shall be subject to interest at the same rate and from the same date as any delinquent preliminary or actual tax first installment.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 58 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 58 - Discounts on Taxes

Section 58. In any city or town that accepts the provisions of this section, on all property taxes assessed in a city or town and collected by a city or town tax collector, discounts for the early and full payment thereof shall be three percent if the taxpayer pays the entire tax bill for the fiscal year in which said tax is due by November first or within thirty days if the bill for such tax was mailed later than October first.  In any city or town that accepts the provisions of this section and that has adopted the provisions of section fifty-seven C, the discount for early and full payment of the tax bill shall be three percent if the taxpayer pays the entire tax bill for the fiscal year in which said tax is due, notwithstanding any provisions of said section fifty-seven C, by August first or within thirty days if the tax bill was mailed later than July first. In the event it is determined at the end of a fiscal year that a taxpayer, who has exercised this option, has overpaid his tax for said fiscal year, the tax bill for the next fiscal year for said taxpayer shall be reduced by the amount that was determined to have been overpaid in the previous fiscal year.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 58a (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 58a - Minimum Abatement or Refund of Property Tax

Section 58A. No abatement or refund of property tax, real or personal, shall be granted or paid in an amount less than one dollar.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 59a (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 59a - Abatements for Purpose of Continuing Environmental Cleanup on Sites Zoned for Commercial or Industrial Use Where There Has Been a Release of Oil or Hazardous Material

Section 59A. Municipalities may establish, relative to sites or portions of sites from or at which there has been a release of oil or hazardous material, an agreement between the city or town and any eligible person, as defined in section 2 of chapter 21E, regarding the abatement of outstanding real estate tax obligations, interest and costs on said sites or portions of sites; provided, however, that said sites or portions of sites are zoned for commercial or industrial uses by the municipality in which said sites or portions of sites exist. Such agreement, for the purpose of continuing environmental cleanup on such sites and redevelopment in such communities, shall include, but shall not be limited to, the amount outstanding, the per cent of interest to accrue if determined applicable by the parties, the description of quantifiable monthly payments, the inception date of such payments, the date of the final payment, late penalties, and any other contractual obligations arranged between the parties. The terms of repayment shall be set at the discretion of the municipality and shall be included in the agreement between the parties. A city or town that accepts this section shall adopt an ordinance or by-law specifying the method for negotiating and approving agreements under this section. Copies of each such agreement shall be signed by the municipal officer required by the ordinance or by-law and by the owner of the property in question, notarized, attested to by the city or town clerk, and provided to the department of environmental protection, the federal Environmental Protection Agency, the city council or board of selectmen, and the owners of the property in question. This section shall take effect in any city or town only upon its acceptance by such city or town.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 60 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 60 - Records of Abatements

Section 60. Every board of assessors shall record all abatements of taxes. The record of abatement of the whole or any part of any tax shall be signed by a majority of the board and shall show plainly the following details:  First, The name or title in which the tax stands assessed.  Second, The year in which the tax was assessed.  Third, The total amount of the tax.  Fourth, The date when the abatement was made.  [There is no Fifth.]  Sixth, The sum abated on personal estate.  Seventh, The sum abated on real estate.  Eighth, The total sum abated.  Ninth, In case of an abatement to put into effect a statutory exemption, exact reference to the statutory provision under which the exemption is granted.  The assessors shall forthwith upon making an abatement furnish the tax collector with a copy thereof.  The records which boards of assessors are required to keep pursuant to this section shall be kept, in the order in which such abatements of taxes are granted, in a book or set of books provided for the purpose and in such form as the commissioner may prescribe. Such book or books, or copies thereof, shall be open to public inspection. Every board of assessors shall at the request of any person furnish one or more copies of any record required by this section to be kept, upon the payment in advance of a fee approximating the cost of such copy or copies.  Applications for abatement or exemption under this chapter shall, except in proceedings before the county commissioners, the appellate tax board or a court of the commonwealth, be open only to the inspection of the assessors, the commissioner, the deputies, clerks and assistants of either the assessors or the commissioner and such other officials or designated private auditors of the commonwealth or of its political subdivisions as may have occasion to inspect such applications in the performance of their official, contractual or designated duties; provided, however, that nothing in this section shall prevent a person who submitted that information, or his designated representative, from inspecting or being provided a copy of the submission upon request. For purposes of this section, a designated private auditor shall be an individual, corporation or other legal entity proficient in auditing selected by the director of accounts or any city or town to perform an audit which includes the assessing department of a city or town under any legal authority, including an audit under sections forty or forty-two of chapter forty-four, or an investigation under section forty-six A of chapter forty-four.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 61 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 61 - Conditions of Abatement

Section 61. A person shall not have an abatement of a tax imposed upon his personal property subject to taxation, except as otherwise provided, unless he has brought in to the assessors a list of his personal estate as required by section 29 and complied with any requests by the assessors to examine books, papers, records and other data under section 31A. If such a list of his personal estate is not filed within the time specified in the notice required by said section 29 or the person has not complied with any requests by the assessors to examine books, papers, records and other data under said section 31A, no part of the tax assessed on the personal estate shall be abated unless the applicant shows to the assessors a reasonable excuse for the delay, or unless such tax exceeds by fifty per cent the amount which would have been assessed on such estate, if the list had been seasonably brought in, and in such case only the excess over such fifty per cent shall be abated. A person applying for an abatement of a tax on real estate may have an abatement although no list of the owner's estate was brought in as required by the said notice; provided, that in any application for an abatement of such a tax the applicant shall include a sufficient description in writing of the particular real estate as to which an abatement is requested.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 61a (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 61a - Discovery; Failure to Comply

Section 61A. A person applying for an abatement of a tax on real estate or personal property shall, upon request, exhibit to the assessors the property to which the application for abatement relates and if required by said assessors, shall exhibit and identify such property, and further, shall, upon request, furnish under oath such written information as may be reasonably required by the board of assessors to determine the actual fair cash valuation of the property to which the application for abatement relates including, but not limited to, income and rents received, and the expenses of maintaining such property. Failure of the applicant to comply with the provisions of this section within thirty days after such request shall bar him from any statutory appeal under this chapter unless the applicant was unable to comply with such request for reasons beyond his control or unless he attempted to comply in good faith.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 62 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 62 - Costs; Prepayment

Section 62. A person applying for an abatement shall pay the legal costs accruing before it is made.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 63 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 63 - Notice of Decision

Section 63. Assessors shall, within ten days after their decision on an application for an abatement, send written notice thereof to the applicant. If the assessors fail to take action on such application for a period of three months following the filing thereof, they shall, within ten days after such period, send the applicant written notice of such inaction. Said notice shall indicate the date of the decision or the date the application is deemed denied as provided in section sixty-four, and shall further state that appeal from such decision or inaction may be taken as provided in sections sixty-four to sixty-five B, inclusive.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 65 (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 65 - Appeals; Appellate Tax Board

Section 65. A person aggrieved as aforesaid with respect to a tax on property in any municipality may, subject to the same conditions provided for an appeal under section sixty-four, appeal to the appellate tax board by filing a petition with such board within three months after the date of the assessors' decision on an application for abatement as provided in section sixty-three, or within three months after the time when the application for abatement is deemed to be denied as provided in section sixty-four. Such appeal shall be heard and determined by said board in the manner provided by chapter fifty-eight A. The board may enter such order as justice may require in the manner provided in the preceding section with respect to complaints removed from the county commissioners. The remedy provided by this section shall be in the alternative for that provided by section sixty-four in case of a tax on property in any municipality other than Revere or Winthrop.  If any such petition is, after the period or date prescribed by this section, delivered by United States mail, or by such alternative private delivery service as the appellate tax board may by rule permit, to such board, the date of the United States postmark, or other substantiating date mark permitted by rule of such board, affixed on the envelope or other appropriate wrapper in which such petition is mailed or delivered shall be deemed to be the date of delivery, if such petition was mailed in the United States in an envelope or other appropriate wrapper, first class postage prepaid, or delivered to such alternative private delivery service, properly addressed to the board. As used in this section, ''United States postmark'' shall mean only a postmark made by the United States post office.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 65a (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 65a - Sale or Taking Real Property for Taxes; Effect Upon Abatement

Section 65A. No sale or taking of real property for non-payment of taxes shall affect the hearing of any application for abatement of such taxes duly made under any provision of this chapter prior to the institution of proceedings for such sale or taking, or the institution, hearing or disposition of any proceeding arising from such application, nor shall the addition of any subsequent taxes to a tax title account affect the hearing of any application for abatement of such subsequent taxes duly made under any provision of this chapter prior to such addition being made, or the institution, hearing or disposition of any proceeding arising from such application. If a final finding be made that the person aggrieved by the assessment of such taxes is entitled to an abatement, he shall be granted such reasonable abatement as justice may require. In case the purchaser of the property is other than the town, the person so aggrieved shall be entitled to relief in the same manner and in the same amount, including interest and charges, as if the payment made to the town for the purchase of the property had been made as a direct payment of the taxes, interest and charges for the non-payment of which the property was sold. In case the property is taken or purchased by the town, the person so aggrieved shall be entitled to have the amount to be paid or tendered in redemption under the provisions of section sixty-two of chapter sixty reduced to the amount which would have been required to have been so paid or tendered if the abatement or abatements had become effective before the taking or purchase or addition to the tax title account.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 65b (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 65b - Appeals; Inability to Pay Balance of Tax

Section 65B. A person who has filed an appeal from the refusal of assessors to abate a tax on a parcel of real estate under the provisions of section sixty-five who has paid either a sum not less than one half of the amount of such tax or a sum not less than one half the amount deemed to be such tax under the provisions of section sixty-four without incurring any interest charges on either of such payments pursuant to section fifty-seven of chapter fifty-nine who claims to be unable presently to pay the amount of tax remaining unpaid, may, on or before the last date for payment of said tax without incurring interest, file a motion alleging that the appellant is unable presently to pay such amount of tax and that he has otherwise complied with the provisions of section sixty-four relative to payment of such tax and moving that he be excused from the requirement that the balance of the tax be paid or that the time for payment thereof be extended. If upon the hearing of said motion supported by evidence the board finds the allegations to be true, the board, by order, may grant the motion upon such conditions as may be imposed therein, which may or may not require such petitioner to pay, in whole or by installments, the amount of the tax remaining unpaid, as a prerequisite to any hearing on the merits of the appeal. If the complainant fails to comply with any of the conditions imposed in said order an appeal may, upon motion, be dismissed. If the complainant complies with the conditions imposed in said order, the appeal thereafter shall be heard and determined by said board in the manner provided by chapter fifty-eight A. The board may enter such order as justice may require in the manner provided in section sixty-four with respect to complaints removed from the county commissioners.
MA Gen L ch 59 § 65c (2021)
2021 Massachusetts General Laws|Part I - Administration of the Government|Title IX - Taxation|Chapter 59 - Assessment of Local Taxes|Section 65c - Late Appeals

Section 65C. If a person has, by reason of the failure of the board of assessors to act upon an application for abatement, a right of appeal to the appellate tax board under section sixty-five but the board of assessors failed to send written notice of such inaction to the applicant within ten days as provided in section sixty-three and by mistake or accident such person fails to enter such appeal in said board within the time prescribed by section sixty-five, said board, upon petition filed within two months after the appeal should have been entered, and after notice and hearing, and upon terms, may allow such person to enter his appeal.