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2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121a - Urban Redevelopment Corporations › Section 19 - Partial Invalidity

Section 19. The provisions of this chapter are hereby declared to be severable, and if any such provision, or the application of any such provision to any person or circumstance shall be held to be invalid or unconstitutional, such invalidity or unconstitutionality shall not be construed to affect the validity or constitutionality of any of the remaining provisions of said chapter or the application of such provision to persons or circumstances other than those to which it is held invalid. It is hereby declared to be the legislative intent that this chapter would have been adopted had such invalid or unconstitutional provision not been included therein.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 2 - Severability

Section 2. The provisions of this chapter are hereby declared to be severable and if any such provision or the application of such provision to any person or circumstances shall be held to be invalid or unconstitutional, such invalidity or unconstitutionality shall not be construed to affect the validity or constitutionality of any of the remaining provisions of said chapter or the application of such provision to persons or circumstances other than those as to which it is held invalid. It is hereby declared to be the legislative intent that said chapter would have been adopted had such invalid or unconstitutional provisions not been included therein.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 3 - Housing Authorities; Creation; Dissolution

Section 3. There is hereby created, in each city and town in the commonwealth, a public body politic and corporate to be known as the ''Housing authority'' of such city or town; provided, that no such authority shall transact any business or exercise any powers until the need for a housing authority has been determined and until a certificate of organization has been issued to it by the state secretary, both as hereinafter provided.
Whenever the municipal officers of a city or an annual or special town meeting shall determine that a housing authority is needed therein for the purpose of the clearance of substandard, decadent or blighted open areas or the provision of housing for families or elderly persons of low income or engaging in a land assembly and redevelopment project, including the preservation, restoration or relocation of historical buildings, it may by vote provide for the organization of such an authority. In determining the need for a housing authority, the city council or the town shall take into consideration the need for relieving congestion of population, the existence of substandard, decadent or blighted open areas or unsanitary or unsafe inhabited dwellings, and the shortage of safe or sanitary dwellings available for families or elderly persons of low income at rentals which they can afford.
Whenever a housing authority determines that there is no further need for its existence, that it has no property to administer, and that all outstanding obligations of the authority have been satisfied, it may by a majority vote of the five members submit the question of its dissolution, in a town, to the voters at an annual town meeting or, in a city, to the municipal officers. If a city or town votes for such dissolution in accordance herewith and the department is satisfied of the existence of the facts required herein it shall so certify to the state secretary and said housing authority shall be dissolved forthwith subject to the applicable provisions of section fifty-one of chapter one hundred and fifty-five.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 3a - Regional Housing Authorities; Creation; Dissolution

Section 3A. Any number of cities or towns may, with the approval of their respective municipal officers and of the department, create or disband by a contract subject to the approval of the department a regional housing authority, with all of the powers and obligations of the constituent authorities, to act in the place of the several housing authorities, if any, theretofore existing. Such contract shall set forth the rights, powers and obligations of the regional housing authority within the several cities or towns in which it is to operate. Any unresolved dispute which may arise as to the rights, powers or obligations conferred by such contract shall be referred to the department for resolution.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 4 - Redevelopment Authorities; Creation; Dissolution

Section 4. There is hereby created, in each city and town in the commonwealth, a public body politic and corporate to be known as the ''Redevelopment authority'' of such city or town; provided, that no such authority shall transact any business or exercise any powers until the need for such an authority has been determined and a certificate of organization has been issued to it by the state secretary, both as hereinafter provided.
Whenever the municipal officers of a city, or the voters at an annual or special town meeting determine that there is a need for a redevelopment authority in such city or town for the purpose of engaging in urban renewal projects or other work under this chapter and that it is in the public interest that such an authority be organized in such city or town, a redevelopment authority shall be organized in such city or town.
Whenever a redevelopment authority determines that there is no further need for its existence, and that all outstanding obligations of the authority have been satisfied, it may by a majority vote of the five members submit the question of its dissolution, in a town, to the voters at an annual town meeting or, in a city, to the municipal officers. If a city or town votes for such dissolution in accordance herewith and the department is satisfied of the existence of the facts required herein, it shall so certify to the state secretary and said redevelopment authority shall be dissolved forthwith subject to the applicable provisions of section fifty-one of chapter one hundred and fifty-five.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 5a - Waiver of Requirement to Appoint Tenant Member to Housing Authority Board

Section 5A. A housing authority may request a waiver of the requirement to appoint a tenant member to a housing authority board if the department determines that a housing authority provided notice pursuant to section 5 and there is no person who is eligible and willing to serve as a tenant member on the board. The waiver shall be for a term of 1 year and may be renewed by the department. A housing authority shall submit a written statement to the department, explaining why a waiver is being requested and documenting the steps that it took to educate tenants about the right of a tenant to serve on a housing authority board; provided, however, that such steps shall include the housing authority meeting with all local tenants' organizations. Before issuing a waiver, the department shall, in addition to reviewing the written statement, make a determination that the housing authority provided notice pursuant to said section 5.
If the department grants a waiver, it shall notify the housing authority and the town that a person other than a person who is eligible to be a tenant member may be appointed to the tenant member seat on the board for a 1-year term. The housing authority shall notify any tenants' organizations of the waiver and post a notice of the waiver throughout common areas of the authority.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 5b - Comprehensive Training Program for Members of a Housing or Redevelopment Authority; Technical Assistance Training for Tenant Members

Section 5B. The department shall establish and implement a comprehensive training program for members of a housing or redevelopment authority. The training program shall be developed by the department in consultation with representatives of local housing authorities, municipal officials, public housing residents, public housing industry professional organizations and relevant state agencies.
The department shall provide instructions and training to members on the proper management of a housing or redevelopment authority. The instructions and training shall include, but not be limited to, the following laws and topics: (i) the open meeting law established pursuant to sections 18 to 25, inclusive, of chapter 30A; (ii) the public records law established pursuant to chapter 66; (iii) the conflict of interest law established pursuant to chapter 268A; (iv) the uniform procurement act established pursuant to chapter 30B; (v) state finance provisions established pursuant to chapter 29; (vi) fraud prevention; (vii) fiduciary responsibilities; (viii) fair housing laws; (ix) tenant occupancy and tenant participation policies; (x) the laws prohibiting discrimination in publicly assisted housing established pursuant to clauses 6 to 7B, inclusive, of section 4 of chapter 151B; and (xi) best practices relating to the general inspection, maintenance and repair of existing units and capital improvements in public housing. The department may consult with the attorney general and the inspector general in developing instructions and training programs pursuant to this section.
The department shall further provide independent technical assistance training to tenant members. The department shall develop the training with the goal of enabling tenant members and members of local tenant organizations to participate fully in the oversight of the housing authority's operation and capital planning. The department shall permit tenants and local tenant organizations who are not members to attend technical assistance training.
Upon appointment and reappointment or election and reelection, all members shall complete a training program, as developed by the department, within 90 days of assuming the member's position. Members shall complete a training program every 2 years. Failure to complete a training program within 90 days of assuming a position as a member or failure to complete a training program every 2 years may constitute neglect of duty and that member may be subject to removal proceedings pursuant to section 6.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 6 - Housing and Redevelopment Authorities; Charges Against Members; Hearing; Removal; Resignation; Suspension

Section 6. The mayor or city council or board of selectmen may make or receive written charges against, and the mayor with the approval of the city council, or the board of selectmen, as the case may be, may accept the resignation of, any member of a housing authority or redevelopment authority appointed or elected by such city or town or may, after hearing, remove any such member because of inefficiency, neglect of duty or misconduct in office provided that such member shall have been given, not less than fourteen days before the date set for such hearing, a copy in writing of the charges against him and written notice of the date and place of hearing to be held thereon, and at the hearing shall have been given the opportunity to be represented by counsel and to be heard in his defense. The mayor and city council or board of selectmen may also make or receive written charges against any member of a housing or redevelopment authority in such city or town appointed by the department and refer the same to the department which may proceed in the same manner as the mayor and city council or board of selectmen under the preceding sentence. Pending final action upon any such charges, the officer or officers having the power to remove such member may temporarily suspend him, provided that they shall immediately reinstate him in office if they find such charges have not been substantiated, and may appoint a person to perform the duties of such suspended member until he is reinstated or until he is removed and his successor is qualified. In case of any such removal the removing authority shall forthwith deliver to the clerk of the city or town attested copies of such charges and of its findings thereon, and the clerk shall cause the same to be filed with the certificate and duplicate certificate required to be filed with the department and the state secretary under section five.
A member of a housing or redevelopment authority who ceases to be a resident of the city or town shall be removed upon the date of his change of residence by operation of law. A member of a housing authority appointed as a tenant, in accordance with the provisions of section five, who ceases to be a tenant in a building owned and operated by or on behalf of the local housing authority shall be removed upon the date of such change by operation of law. A member of a housing authority who is a tenant in a housing project shall not participate in any decision relating to the project affecting his personal interest.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 7a - Guidelines for Contracts to Be Executed by Housing Authority and Executive Director

Section 7A. The department shall promulgate guidelines for contracts to be executed by the housing authority and an executive director. The department may review all contracts between the housing authorities and executive directors and all terms for payments or monetary remuneration relevant to state payments; provided, however, that the department shall review all contracts and all terms for payments or monetary remuneration worth more than $100,000 per annum. The department may strike contract provisions that do not conform to the guidelines.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 9 - Urban Renewal Agencies

Section 9. The operating agencies having the powers and subject to the limitations provided in sections forty-five to fifty-seven, inclusive, to be known as urban renewal agencies, shall be:—
(a) each redevelopment authority;
(b) each housing authority of a city or town in which no redevelopment authority has been organized; provided, however, that no housing authority shall initiate an urban renewal project until the municipal officers of a city or an annual or special town meeting shall have determined that there exists in such city or town a need for urban renewal;
(c) each housing authority of a city or town in which a redevelopment authority has been organized, but only with respect to projects initiated by such authority before the organization of a redevelopment authority and subject to section fifty-one.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 10 - Operating Agencies; Designation of Authorities

Section 10. Unless otherwise particularly provided in sections fifty-eight and fifty-nine the operating agencies having the powers and subject to the limitations provided in sections fifty-eight and fifty-nine of this chapter shall be either housing authorities or urban renewal agencies, whichever may be designated for the purposes of the particular program by the municipal officers.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 12 - Operating Agencies; Wages; Labor Requirements; Social Security

Section 12. Each contractor with an operating agency and each subcontractor shall comply with the applicable requirements of chapter one hundred and forty-nine as to wages and hours of labor and any other conditions relating to employment. The attorney general shall enforce this paragraph and shall also have power to petition the court for injunction or other appropriate relief against any operating agency which fails to comply herewith.
An operating agency shall enter into a compact or compacts with the Social Security Board or take such other action as it may deem appropriate to enable its employees to come within the provisions and obtain the benefits of the Social Security Act. If the employees of such an agency shall come within the provisions of the Social Security Act, their employment shall be included in the term ''employment'' as used in sections one to seven, inclusive, of chapter one hundred and fifty-one A.
Except as provided in section twenty-nine of this chapter, the provisions of chapter thirty-one and the rules made thereunder shall not apply to any officer, agent or employee of an operating agency or to any person employed on or in connection with any project of an operating agency.
Except as provided in sections twenty-eight and thirty all by-laws, ordinances and regulations of the city or town in which any such project lies relating to the construction of buildings, municipal planning, zoning and the protection of public health shall apply to every project of an operating agency located in such city or town.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 13 - Operating Agencies; Contract and Tort Liability; Member's Personal Liability; Relocation of Utility Facilities

Section 13. An operating agency shall be liable in contract or in tort in the same manner as a private corporation. The members, employees, officers and agents of an operating agency shall not be liable as such on its contracts or for torts not committed or directly authorized by them nor shall said members be liable for any negligent or wrongful act or omission for which the operating agency would be liable under applicable rules of law, in which event any action either civil or criminal against the operating agency shall be the exclusive remedy for any injured party. The property or funds of an operating agency shall not be subject to attachment or to levy and sale on execution, but if such agency refuses to pay a judgment entered against it in any court of competent jurisdiction, the superior court, sitting within and for the county in which the agency is situated, may, by writ of mandamus, direct the treasurer of such agency to pay such judgment. The real estate of such an agency shall not be subject to liens under chapter two hundred and fifty-four, but the provisions of sections twenty-eight and twenty-nine of chapter one hundred and forty-nine shall be applicable to any construction work by such agencies.
An operating agency shall reimburse the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and every railroad corporation for all reasonable costs and expenses incurred by the said transportation authority or such railroad corporation to relocate such of their respective facilities as are required to be removed as part of a project being undertaken pursuant to this chapter by such operating agency and as are necessary for the continuance of the common carrier services performed by said transportation authority or such railroad corporation. ''Facilities'', as used in this paragraph, shall mean poles, tracks, switches, wires, conduits, cables, signals and structures and in addition thereto equipment appurtenant to any of the foregoing.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 14 - Operating Agencies; Federal Loans; Conveyance Upon Default

Section 14. An operating agency may obligate itself, in any contract with the federal government for a loan or the payment of annual contributions authorized by section eleven, to convey to the federal government the project to which such contract relates, upon the occurrence of a substantial default with respect to the covenants, terms and conditions of such contract to which such agency is subject. Such contract may further provide that, in case of such conveyance, the federal government may complete, operate, manage, lease, convey or otherwise deal with the project in accordance with the terms of such contract; provided, that the contract shall require that, as soon as practicable, after the federal government is satisfied that all of the defaults on account of which it acquired the project have been remedied, and that the project will thereafter be operated in compliance with the terms of the contract, the federal government shall reconvey to such agency or its successor the project in the condition in which it then exists. The obligation of an operating agency under such contract shall be subject to specific enforcement by any court having jurisdiction, and, notwithstanding any other provision of the law, shall not be deemed to constitute a mortgage.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 15 - Operating Agencies; Bonds, Notes, Certificates; Negotiable Instruments

Section 15. The bonds, notes and certificates of indebtedness of an operating agency, in the absence of an express recital to the contrary on the face thereof, shall constitute negotiable instruments for all purposes. They may be payable from the income of the agency or constitute a general obligation thereof, may be sold at not less than par, at public or private sale, may mature at such time or times, may be secured in such manner, may provide for such rights and remedies upon their default, may contain such other covenants, terms and conditions not inconsistent with law, may be executed by such officers, and may be issued with or without the corporate seal, all as may be authorized either by vote of the agency or by the officer or officers to whom the power to determine any or all the matters set forth in this sentence may be expressly delegated by vote of such agency. The engraved or printed facsimile of the seal of an agency on its bonds, notes or certificates of indebtedness shall have the same validity and effect as if such seal were impressed thereon. Whenever a bond, note or certificate of indebtedness is required to bear the signatures of two or more officers, it shall be sufficient if the signature of any one of such officers upon such instrument is a written signature and the remaining signature or signatures are engraved, printed or stamped facsimile signatures; provided, that each officer whose facsimile signature appears on such instrument has, by a writing bearing his written signature and filed in the office of the secretary of the agency, authorized the officer whose written signature appears on such instrument to cause such facsimile to be placed thereon. The facsimile signature of any officer so engraved, printed or stamped thereon shall have the same validity and effect as his written signature. In case any officer whose signature or a facsimile thereof appears on any notes, bonds or coupons shall cease to be such officer before the delivery of such notes or bonds, such signature or facsimile shall nevertheless be valid and sufficient for all purposes as if he had remained in office until such delivery.
The bonds, notes and certificates of indebtedness of an operating agency issued under this chapter and the interest thereon shall be exempt from taxation, with respect to principal and income. The bonds of such an agency issued under this chapter shall be legal investments for the deposits and the income derived therefrom of savings banks, for the trust funds of trust companies, for the capital and other funds of insurance companies, and for funds over which the commonwealth has exclusive control.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 17 - Liability of Commonwealth or Political Subdivisions for Debts of Housing Authority

Section 17. No bond, note or other evidence of indebtedness executed or obligation or liability incurred by an operating agency shall be a debt or charge against the commonwealth or any political subdivision thereof other than such agency. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to obligate the commonwealth, or any political subdivision thereof other than the applicable operating agency, or to pledge its credit, to any payment whatsoever to any operating agency or to any creditor or bondholder thereof, nor shall anything therein contained be construed as granting to any operating agency any exemption from taxation except as expressly provided therein or to render the commonwealth, or any political subdivision other than such agency liable for any indebtedness or liability incurred, acts done, or any omissions or failures to act, of any such agency.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 18 - Preparation of Master Plans, Etc. by City or Town; Appropriation and Payment

Section 18. Whether or not an operating agency has been created therein any city or town may undertake, itself or by or through any department, board, agency, authority, or office of the city or town, or by or through any operating agency, planning district, metropolitan district, or other public body any planning activities within such city or town for the preparation or completion of master or general plans, a workable program for development of the community, general neighborhood renewal plans, a community renewal project, any other planning study, project or program and a code enforcement project, including the voluntary or compulsory repair and rehabilitation of buildings and improvements, the enforcement of laws, codes and regulations relating to the use of land and the use and occupancy of buildings and improvements, and the provision and repair of streets, curbs, sidewalks, street lighting, tree planting and similar improvements in connection therewith and may authorize such department, board, agency, authority, office, operating agency, district or public body to act as the agent of such city or town in entering contracts for financial assistance for such purposes from the federal government or the commonwealth. Any such city or town may raise and appropriate or agree with such department, board, agency, authority, office, district, operating agency or public body or with the federal government or the commonwealth to raise and appropriate such sums as may be necessary for the purpose.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 19 - Initial Costs and Annual Operating Expenses of Operating Agencies; Appropriations and Payment by City

Section 19. Cities and towns may raise and appropriate money for the purpose of defraying the initial costs and annual administrative expenses of an operating agency authorized to be organized therein, including the expense of preparing any plans, studies, programs and surveys an operating agency is authorized to prepare and the expense of preparing plans in connection with one or more proposed projects.
Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, any city or town may from time to time appropriate or agree to appropriate money for the purpose of aiding in the preparation of plans and estimates needed to prepare applications for federal loans or grants and in the preparation of any other estimates, plans, orders of taking and contract documents in connection with any proposed or approved project. All moneys appropriated by a city or town under the preceding sentence shall be repaid by the operating agency to such city or town if said agency subsequently receives other moneys available for the purposes for which such moneys were appropriated, but otherwise such moneys need not be repaid.
All moneys appropriated under this section in aid of an operating agency or received by it from any source shall be paid to the treasurer of the agency or such other officer of the agency as may be authorized by it, and shall be disbursed by such treasurer or other officer, subject to accounting therefor as required by this chapter.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 20 - Development, Acquisition and Operating Costs; Relocation Payments; Losses; Appropriation and Payment by City

Section 20. A city or town in which an operating agency has been organized may raise and appropriate, or may borrow, or may agree with such agency or with the federal government or the commonwealth to raise and appropriate or to borrow, in aid of such agency, such sums as may be necessary for:—
(1) defraying all the development, acquisition and operating costs of a clearance, urban renewal, community renewal, relocation, rehabilitation or low-rent housing project within such city or town; or
(2) defraying such part of the development, acquisition and operating costs of any such project to which either the federal government, pursuant to federal legislation, or any other source has rendered or has agreed to render financial assistance, as will not be met by loans other than temporary loans or by contributions or grants other than annual or other contributions and grants in the nature of reimbursement from the federal government or from any such other source; and for
(3) the making of relocation payments by such agency; and
(4) repaying any loss which the city or town has agreed to bear and which is incurred as a result of the early taking, acquisition or clearance of land not used for urban renewal purposes.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 21 - Indebtedness Limitation

Section 21. Indebtedness authorized under section twenty shall be outside the limit of indebtedness prescribed in section ten of chapter forty-four, and shall be payable within twenty years and otherwise subject to sections sixteen to twenty-seven, inclusive, of said chapter forty-four, except that in the case of indebtedness authorized under clause (1) or clause (2) of section twenty, the first principal payment may be made within five years and the last within twenty-five years of the date of the bonds or notes issued for the Serial Loan. The total amount of indebtedness of any city or town outstanding at any one time under clause (3) of section twenty alone shall not exceed one half of one per cent, and under clauses (1), (2) and (4) combined of said section twenty shall not in any city with a population over one hundred and fifty thousand exceed seven per cent of its equalized valuation and in any other city exceed six per cent of its equalized valuation.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 24 - Agreement to Bear Acquisition Loss

Section 24. A city or town, in which the operating agency, pursuant to section forty-seven, proposes to take, acquire or clear land constituting the whole or part or parts of an area which the agency has determined to be a substandard, decadent or blighted open area and for which such agency is preparing an urban renewal plan, may enter into an agreement with the operating agency to bear any loss that may arise as a result of such taking, acquisition or clearance in the event that such land is not used for urban renewal purposes; provided, however, that no city or town shall enter into any agreement under this paragraph which would cause the losses agreed to be borne by such city or town under all agreements under this paragraph in effect at any one time, according to the estimates of costs upon which such agreement or agreements are originally based, to exceed four per cent of its equalized valuation.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 25 - Housing Programs; Statement of Emergency

Section 25. It is hereby declared that substandard and decadent areas exist in certain portions of the commonwealth, and that there is not in the commonwealth, within a reasonable distance of the principal centers of employment, an adequate supply of low-rent housing for families of low income; that in certain portions of the commonwealth decent, safe and sanitary housing cannot be provided for families of low income in rural areas at a cost which would warrant private enterprise in the locality or in the same general area to provide an adequate supply thereof; that this situation tends to cause an increase and spread of disease and crime and constitutes a menace to the health, safety, morals, welfare and comfort of the inhabitants of the commonwealth and is detrimental to property values therein; that this situation cannot readily be remedied by the ordinary operations of private enterprise; that a public exigency exists which makes the clearance of substandard or decadent areas and the provision of housing for persons of low income a public necessity; that the clearance of substandard and decadent areas and the provision of housing for persons of low income, or either, constitute a public use for which private property may be acquired by eminent domain and public funds raised by taxation may be expended; and the enactment of sections one to forty-four of this chapter is declared to be a public necessity. Moreover, it is hereby declared that substandard and decadent areas can often be eliminated only by the development of housing of persons of varied economic means in the same project and neighborhood and that any benefit to tenants other than low or moderate income tenants provided under this chapter will be at most incidental to, and no greater than is necessary for, achieving proper housing in appropriate surroundings for low income persons and families.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 26d - Names and Contact Information of All Members and Senior Staff to Be Posted on Wall of Community Center and on Website

Section 26D. Housing authorities shall post on the wall of the community center for each of its developments the names, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses or other means of contact for all members and senior staff. Housing authorities shall maintain a website that shall display the same information.
The department shall promulgate regulations to implement this section.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 28a - Annual Plan; Availability to Public for Review and Comment

Section 28A. (a) Each housing authority shall submit to the department an annual plan. The annual plan shall state the housing authority's goals and objectives to meet or improve upon the department's performance based review and assessment standards under section 26B. The annual plan shall further include the housing authority's capital improvement, maintenance and repair plans for the following year and address deficiencies in meeting applicable performance standards.
(b) The housing authority shall make the annual plan available for public review and comment through an annual public hearing. Not later than 45 days before the date of a public hearing, the housing authority shall publish a notice informing the public of the agenda items which shall be covered at the hearing, including, but not limited to, the housing authority's: (i) proposed operating budget; (ii) proposed capital plan; and (iii) specific plan to meet or improve upon the performance based review and the assessment standards under section 26B.
(c) The department shall promulgate regulations to implement this section.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 30 - Contract With Federal Government; Acquiring Federally Owned Project

Section 30. A housing authority, with the written approval of the department and of the mayor of the city or selectmen of the town in which the project is situated, may enter into a contract with the federal government for purchasing or leasing a clearance or housing project owned or controlled by the federal government. If such a project has been so leased by a housing authority and such authority has by vote declared that the buildings of the project have been constructed in a manner that will afford necessary safety, sanitation and protection in other respects to the public, no changes shall be required by any agent of the commonwealth or of the city or town in the manner of construction, or the buildings, the fixtures or appurtenances thereto or the use for which the project was designed.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 32a - Parking Areas; Rules and Regulations; Towing

Section 32A. A housing authority may make reasonable rules and regulations for the use of parking areas under its control and may make reasonable charges for the use of such areas; provided, however, no housing authority shall charge its tenants for the use of any parking space within an area under its control. Any such authority shall have the power to tow any abandoned or unregistered vehicle which is parked in any area under their control. At least one attested copy of said rules and regulations shall be posted at each facility and any violation thereof shall be punished by a fine of not more than twenty dollars.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 32b - Definitions

Section 32B. As used in sections thirty-two B to thirty-two F, inclusive, the following words shall have the following meanings unless the content otherwise requires:
''Landlord'', the owner or managing agent of a public housing development or a subsidized housing development.
''Public housing development'', such developments for housing owned and operated by a housing authority pursuant to this chapter.
''Subsidized housing development'', such multi-family developments for housing as: (a) receive the benefit of subsidy in the form of project-based assistance under the section 8 housing assistance program for the disposition of projects owned by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development; or (b) are owned or held by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development as mortgagee-in-possession.
''Tenant household'', an individual, family unit, or other group living in a public housing development or a subsidized housing development, as reported to the landlord of the development at initial occupancy or thereafter.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 32c - Unlawful Conduct by Tenant, Members or Non-Members of Tenant Household; Civil Action by Landlord for Injunctive or Other Equitable Relief

Section 32C. Whenever a person who is not a member of a tenant household has, on or near a public housing development or a subsidized housing development: (a) caused serious physical harm to a member of a tenant household or employee of the landlord or any other person lawfully on the premises of the housing authority; (b) intentionally, willfully, and repeatedly destroyed, vandalized, or stolen property of a member of a tenant household or of the landlord or any other person lawfully on the premises of the housing authority; (c) intentionally and willfully destroyed, vandalized, or stolen property of a member of a tenant household or of the landlord or any other person lawfully on the premises of the housing authority and attempted to seriously physically harm a member of a tenant household or employee of the landlord or any other person lawfully on the premises of the housing authority; (d) possessed or carried a weapon in violation of section 10 of chapter 269 or possessed or used an explosive or infernal machine, as such as defined in section 102A of chapter 266 with the exception of fire-crackers or violated any other provision of section 101, 102, 102A or 102B of said chapter 266; (e) unlawfully sold or possessed with intent to distribute a controlled substance as established as Class A, B, C, or D in section 31 of chapter 94C; or (f) committed or repeatedly threatened to commit a battery upon a person or damaged or repeatedly threatened to commit damage to the property of another for the purpose of intimidation because of the person's race, color, religion, or national origin or on account of the person's participation in an eviction proceeding; the landlord of such premises may bring a civil action for injunctive or other appropriate equitable relief in order to prohibit the person from entering or remaining in or upon the public or subsidized housing development, unless there is cause to believe that such unlawful conduct is unlikely to continue or to pose a serious threat to the health or safety of the development, the tenant households at such development, or the employees of the landlord. Whenever a tenant or member of a tenant's household residing in a public or subsidized housing development has caused or threatened to cause harm to another tenant, an employee of the landlord, or any other person who is known or believed to be a witness in an eviction against the tenant, the landlord may bring a civil action for injunctive or other appropriate equitable relief in order to protect the witness from harm threatened by the tenant or member of the tenant household.
Nothing in this section shall be read to limit the civil and criminal remedies otherwise available under section thirty-nine of chapter two hundred and sixty-five or section one hundred and twenty-seven B of chapter two hundred and sixty-six.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 32d - Actions by Tenants or Tenants' Organizations

Section 32D. A tenant or member of a tenant household in a public or subsidized housing development whose health or safety has been seriously threatened as described in section thirty-two C, and where there is reasonable cause to believe that such unlawful conduct will continue to pose a serious threat to his health and safety may institute and prosecute in his own name and on his own behalf or on behalf of other willing household members a civil action requiring the landlord of the public or subsidized housing development to seek injunctive and other appropriate relief as provided in section thirty-two C, provided that the landlord of the public or subsidized housing development has actual or constructive notice of said unlawful conduct. Such civil action may also be pursued by a tenants organization, whether incorporated or unincorporated, on behalf of its members, and without any requirement that such organization be represented by counsel in order to pursue such action. This paragraph shall not be construed so as to limit relief otherwise available under chapter two hundred and nine A. Nothing in this section shall be read to limit the civil and criminal remedies otherwise available under section thirty-nine of chapter two hundred and sixty-five or section one hundred and twenty-seven B of chapter two hundred and sixty-six. This paragraph does not limit any existing nor create any new civil or criminal liability.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 32e - Jurisdiction Over Civil Actions; Appellate Review

Section 32E. Civil actions under section thirty-two C or thirty-two D shall be instituted in the housing or superior court departments having jurisdiction where the residential premises are located. Orders and judgments entered in such actions shall be subject to appellate review as if the interlocutory order or judgment was entered in the superior court department.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 32g - Temporary Absences From Commonwealth; Presumption of Abandonment of Residency and Eligibility for Assistance

Section 32G. A temporary absence from the commonwealth which exceeds 30 calendar days or 90 days in aggregate over the course of a calendar year shall create a rebuttable presumption that Massachusetts residency has been abandoned by a recipient of state or municipally-funded or subsidized housing and that the recipient is no longer eligible for such assistance pursuant to this chapter. The department shall promulgate regulations in accordance with this section, including, but not limited to, the process by which the 90 days shall be monitored.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 33 - Equivalent Elimination of Substandard Dwelling Units

Section 33. No project for low-rent housing involving the construction of new dwellings shall be undertaken by a housing authority unless the city or town has entered into an agreement with the housing authority providing that, subsequent to the initiation of the project and within five years after the completion thereof, there has been or will be elimination by demolition, condemnation, effective closing or compulsory repair or improvement of unsafe or unsanitary dwelling units situated in the locality or metropolitan area substantially equal in number to the number of newly constructed dwelling units provided by such project; provided, that where more than one family is living in an unsafe or unsanitary dwelling unit, the elimination of such unit shall count as the elimination of units equal to the number of families accommodated therein; and provided, further, that such elimination may, in the discretion of the department be deferred in any locality or metropolitan area where there is an acute shortage of decent, safe or sanitary housing available to families of low income; and provided, further, that this requirement shall not apply in the case of any low-rent housing project located in a rural nonfarm area, or to any low-rent housing project undertaken under the provisions of section thirty-four.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 35 - Contracts for Supplementary State Financial Assistance

Section 35. The commonwealth, acting by and through the department, may enter into a contract or contracts with a housing authority for supplementary state financial assistance in the form of grants and guarantees as provided in and subject to the limitations of sections thirty-four and thirty-four B with respect to that portion of the development cost of a federally assisted housing project or projects which is not financed by such federal assistance.