reglab/statecodes huggingface dataset:
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 36 - Receipt of Loans and Grants From Federal Sources or From Other Sources

Section 36. The commonwealth shall have power to receive loans and grants from the federal government or any agency or instrumentality thereof, or from any other source, public or private, and to use any such loan or grant or part thereof for any purpose of this chapter, or to act as agent of, or to cooperate in any way with, the federal government or any agency or instrumentality thereof on any project authorized by this chapter.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 38 - Housing for the Elderly and the Handicapped; Declaration of Policy

Section 38. It is hereby declared that substandard and decadent areas exist in certain portions of the commonwealth and that there is not, in certain parts of the commonwealth, an adequate supply of decent, safe and sanitary housing for elderly persons of low income, available for rents which such persons can afford to pay, and the rents which such persons can afford to pay would not warrant private enterprise in providing housing for such persons; that this situation tends to cause an increase and spread of communicable and chronic diseases, that the lack of properly constructed dwelling units designed specifically to meet the needs of elderly persons aggravates those diseases peculiar to the elderly thereby crowding the hospitals in the commonwealth with elderly persons under conditions of idleness that inevitably invite further senility; that this situation constitutes a menace to the health, safety, welfare and comfort of the inhabitants of the commonwealth and is detrimental to property values in the localities in which it exists; that this situation cannot readily be remedied by private enterprise; and that a public exigency exists which makes the provision of housing for elderly persons of low income and the clearance of decadent or substandard areas a public necessity; that the provision of housing for elderly persons of low income for the purpose of reducing the cost to the commonwealth of their care by promoting their health and welfare, thereby prolonging their productivity in the interest of the state and nation, and the clearance of decadent or substandard areas, or either, constitutes and hereby is declared to be a public use for which private property may be taken by eminent domain and public funds raised by taxation may be expended.
It is hereby further declared that there is not, in certain parts of the commonwealth, an adequate supply of decent, safe and sanitary housing for handicapped persons of low income available for rents which such persons can afford to pay, and the rents which such persons can afford to pay would not warrant private enterprise in providing housing for such persons; that this situation often results in the institutionalization of such persons at substantial cost to the commonwealth or their resort to decadent or substandard housing with the result that such decadent or substandard housing cannot be eliminated; that this situation aggravates the hardship of handicapped persons and prevents their living productive lives and that the provision of housing for handicapped persons of low income is in the interest of the commonwealth and hereby is declared to be a public use for which private property may be taken by eminent domain and public funds may be expended.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 38a - Bureau of Housing for the Handicapped; Director; Functions

Section 38A. There shall be within the department a bureau of housing for the handicapped, in the division of community development. The bureau shall consist of the director, and other such persons as shall be necessary to conduct the work of the bureau. The director shall be selected by the commissioner after consultation with representative consumer groups, with preference given to a qualified handicapped person, or to a person who has expertise in the area of the housing needs of the handicapped.
The functions of the bureau shall include but not be limited to the following activities: to coordinate within the department the several program elements relative to housing and services for handicapped persons of low income; to assist local housing authorities in planning, developing and implementing appropriate housing, management and service programs for handicapped persons of low income; to issue guidelines and directives and to promulgate rules and regulations relative to adequately housing the handicapped; to promulgate regulations and guidelines relative to contracts entered into for the provisions of services to residents of housing for handicapped persons, including the management and maintenance of the premises; to approve such contracts; to serve as a focus in developing local and statewide planning to assist handicapped persons obtain the housing and services that will increase their ability to live independently; to seek, accept and otherwise take full advantage of all federal and state aid available to the department to assist in developing housing and related services for handicapped persons; to assist other agencies to take full advantage of all federal, state and local assistance for housing, rehabilitation, and the provision of services to assist handicapped persons to live with greater independence; and to work in close cooperation with consumers, including representatives from the various organizations of physically handicapped, deaf or blind, and advocates for persons with mental retardation, emotional deficiencies, and for other socially disadvantaged and handicapped persons, and also all federal, state and local organizations and agencies concerned with developing rational planning and effective implementation of housing and related services for handicapped persons of low income and to increase their independence, productivity and self-satisfaction.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 38b - Housing for the Elderly and the Handicapped; Service Coordinator Program

Section 38B. The department is authorized to establish a program to provide service coordinators to assist residents in housing developed pursuant to sections thirty-nine and forty. The purpose of such program shall be to assist tenants living in such housing to meet tenancy requirements in order to maintain and enhance the quality of life in such housing. Service coordinators shall be assigned to said housing as determined necessary by the department. The department shall consult with the executive office of health and human services, the executive office of elder affairs, housing authorities, the Massachusetts rehabilitation commission, and the office on disability in developing the guidelines of said service coordinator program and in evaluating said program.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 38c - Program to Conduct Annual Surveys of Public Housing Residents

Section 38C. The department shall establish and implement a program to conduct annual surveys of public housing residents. The department shall develop the annual survey in conjunction with stakeholders, including public housing residents. The survey shall be conducted by the department and shall preserve the anonymity of the residents. The survey shall be conducted in languages which reflect the native languages spoken by tenants residing in the housing authorities and the survey respondents shall be allowed to respond in their native language. The survey shall include, at a minimum, questions about maintenance and repair of units, housing authority communication to residents, resident participation in housing authority governance, resident safety and resident services, including, but not limited to, job training programs. The department shall establish procedures to conduct physical inspections of a representative sample of units in conjunction with the survey; provided further, that the results of the survey shall be used to evaluate the housing authority's performance under section 26B. Housing authorities shall have the right to respond to the results of the surveys in writing within 60 days of the results being transmitted to the housing authority by the department.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 41 - State Financial Assistance; Housing for Elderly Persons of Low Income

Section 41. The commonwealth, acting by and through the department, may enter into a contract or contracts with a housing authority for state financial assistance in the form of a grant by the commonwealth for the development cost of a housing project or projects or a part or parts of a housing project or projects for elderly persons of low income. The total amount of grants financed by bonds authorized prior to September first, nineteen hundred and eighty-three shall not exceed the sum of seven hundred and one million dollars; provided, however, that the amount expended pursuant to this section during any one fiscal year shall not exceed thirty-three million three hundred thousand dollars. The contract or contracts for financial assistance may provide for additional state financial assistance in the form of a guarantee by the commonwealth of notes of the housing authority issued to temporarily finance the development cost of such a project but the amount guaranteed on account of any project shall not exceed the amount of grant for that project. The total amount of all notes guaranteed pursuant to this section prior to September first, nineteen hundred and eighty-three shall not exceed seven hundred and one million dollars, exclusive of notes which may be issued for refunding purposes. Any excess between the completed cost of a project as determined by the department and the notes outstanding therefore may be retired from the proceeds of such notes and if so retired, shall not be used in computing the total amount of notes guaranteed by the commonwealth under this section. The provisions of sections thirty-four, thirty-four B and thirty-five shall, so far as apt, be applicable to contracts, grants, guarantees and notes authorized by this section.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 41a - State Financial Assistance; Housing for Handicapped Persons of Low Income

Section 41A. The commonwealth acting through and by the department, may enter into a contract or contracts with a housing authority for financial assistance in the form of a grant by the commonwealth of the development cost of a project or projects or a part or parts of a project or projects for handicapped persons of low income or families of low income of which one or more persons is handicapped. The total amount of grants financed by bonds authorized prior to September first, nineteen hundred and eighty-three shall not exceed the sum of twenty-five million dollars. Such contract or contracts may provide for additional state financial assistance in the form of a guarantee by the commonwealth of notes of the housing authority issued to finance temporarily the development cost of such a project but the amount guaranteed on account of any project shall not exceed the amount of grant for that project. The total amount of all notes guaranteed pursuant to this section prior to September first, nineteen hundred and eighty-three shall not exceed the sum of twenty-five million dollars, exclusive of notes which may be issued for refunding purposes. Housing units for handicapped persons of families of low income, of which one or more persons is handicapped, provided as a project or a part of a project for housing for elderly persons and subject to a contract for financial assistance pursuant to section forty-one, shall not be included in the computation of the dollar or unit limits of this section. The provisions of sections thirty-four, thirty-four B and thirty-five, shall, so far as apt, be applicable to contracts for financial assistance, grants, notes and guarantees authorized under this section. The department shall report to the general court the use for which such funds were expended prior to requesting additional funds for further construction under this program.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 42 - Rental Assistance Program; Declaration of Necessity

Section 42. It is hereby declared (a) that there does not now exist within the commonwealth an adequate supply of decent, safe and sanitary dwelling and such other housing units subject to regulations promulgated by the department not inconsistent with the standards required for dwelling units, which are available at rents which families of low income and handicapped persons of low income or families of low income of which one or more persons is handicapped can afford without depriving themselves of the other necessities of life, (b) that the elimination of decadent or substandard areas in the commonwealth and the rehousing of the families now in such areas, many of them of low income, in decent, safe and sanitary housing is a public necessity, (c) that experience has demonstrated that the construction of the new low-rent housing projects on the large scale required to provide the needed dwelling and said other housing units would be unduly expensive and would generate undesirable social consequences, (d) that there exists a supply of moderate rental dwelling and said other housing units within the commonwealth presently under construction or vacant which could be used to house such families of low income and handicapped persons of low income or families of low income of which one or more persons is handicapped as cannot presently afford decent, safe and sanitary housing, provided public funds are available to supplement the portion of their income which they can afford to spend on housing, and (e) a program of rental assistance operated through the housing authorities in the cities and towns would help end the undesirable concentration and segregation of families of low income, in separate, concentrated areas of our cities and towns and help give every citizen an equal opportunity to enjoy decent, safe and sanitary housing in a neighborhood of his own choice.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 44a - Leasing of Housing Units in Mhfa Projects for Replacement or Relocation Housing Authorized

Section 44A. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, a housing authority, in addition to its other powers and for the purpose of replacing dwelling units or said other housing units subject to regulations promulgated by the department of community affairs not inconsistent with the standards required for dwelling units for persons and families of low income which will be eliminated through the demolition, clearance, sale or other disposition of low rent housing projects or to provide relocation housing for persons and families of low income and elderly persons of low income displaced thereby, may lease dwelling units or said other housing units in projects financed by the MHFA for a period not to exceed forty years from the completion of such MHFA project, as determined by the department. The requirements with respect to rentals and tenant selection for low rent housing projects shall apply to units leased by such housing authorities pursuant to this section, except that preference shall be given to displaced occupants of the low rent housing projects so demolished, cleared, sold or otherwise disposed of.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 47 - Urban Renewal Programs; Acquisition by Eminent Domain; Notice; Petition

Section 47. Notwithstanding any contrary provision of this chapter, an urban renewal agency may, with the consent of the department and municipal officers, and after a temporary loan contract for the purpose has been executed under the federal Housing Act of 1949, as amended, take by eminent domain, as provided in clause (d) of section eleven, or acquire by purchase, lease, gift, bequest or grant, and hold, clear, repair, operate and, after having taken or acquired the same, dispose of land constituting the whole or any part or parts of any area which, after a public hearing of which the land owners of record have been notified by registered mail and of which at least twenty days notice has been given by publication in a newspaper having a general circulation in the city or town in which the land lies it has determined to be a decadent, substandard or blighted open area and for which it is preparing an urban renewal plan, and for such purposes may borrow money from the federal government or any other source or use any available funds or both; provided, however, that no such taking or acquisition shall be effected until the expiration of thirty days after the urban renewal agency has notified the land owner of record by registered mail and has caused a notice of such determination to be published, in a newspaper having general circulation in such city or town. Within thirty days after publication of the notice of such determination, any person aggrieved by such determination may file a petition in the supreme judicial or superior court sitting in Suffolk county for a writ of certiorari against the urban renewal agency to correct errors of law in such determination, which shall be the exclusive remedy for such purpose; and the provisions of section one D of chapter two hundred and thirteen, and of section four of chapter two hundred and forty-nine, shall apply to said petition except as herein provided with respect to the time for the filing thereof.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 49 - Sale or Lease of Property Acquired for Urban Renewal Project

Section 49. If an urban renewal agency shall sell or lease any property acquired by it for an urban renewal project, the terms of such sales or leases shall obligate the purchasers or lessees, (a) to devote the land to the use specified in the urban renewal plan for said land; (b) to begin the building of their improvements within a reasonable time; provided, however, that, with respect to any improvements of a type which any federal agency, as defined in subsection (b) of section 3 of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949, as amended, is otherwise authorized to make, this clause shall apply to such federal agency only to the extent that it is authorized, and funds have been made available, to make the improvements involved; (c) to give preference in the selection of tenants for dwelling units built in the project area to families displaced therefrom because of clearance and renewal activity who desire to live in such dwelling units and who will be able to pay rents or prices equal to rents or prices charged other families for similar or comparable dwelling units built as a part of the same redevelopment; and (d) to comply with such other conditions as are deemed necessary to carry out the purposes of this chapter, or requirements of federal legislation or regulations under which loans, grants or contributions have been made or agreed to be made to meet a part of the cost of the project. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as limiting the power of an urban renewal agency in the event of a default by a purchaser or lessee of land in an urban renewal project to retake title to and possession of the property sold or leased free from the obligations in the conveyance or lease thereof.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 50 - Delegation of Power to Municipality to Plan and Undertake Urban Renewal Project

Section 50. An urban renewal agency is hereby authorized to delegate to a city or town or other public body or to any board or officer of a city, town or other public body any of the powers or functions of the agency with respect to the planning or undertaking of an urban renewal project in the area in which such city, town or other public body is authorized to act, and such city, town or other public body, or such board or officer thereof, is hereby authorized to carry out or perform such powers or functions for the agency. Any public body is hereby authorized to enter into agreements which may extend over the period of a loan to the urban renewal agency by the federal government, notwithstanding any provision of rule of law to the contrary, with any other public body or bodies respecting action to be taken pursuant to any of the powers granted by this chapter, including the furnishing of funds or other assistance, in connection with an urban renewal plan or urban renewal project. An urban renewal agency, to the greatest extent it determines to be feasible in carrying out the provisions of this chapter, shall afford maximum opportunity consistent with the sound needs of the city or town as a whole for the rehabilitation or redevelopment of decadent, substandard or blighted open areas by private enterprise.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 51 - Redevelopment Authority Taking Over Project Initiated by Housing Authority

Section 51. A housing authority of a city or town which, prior to the organization of a redevelopment authority in such city or town, has initiated an urban renewal project may complete, operate and maintain such project notwithstanding such organization of a redevelopment authority; provided, however, that if the municipal officers of such city or town so order and with the consent in writing of the holders of any bonds, notes or certificates of indebtedness of the housing authority issued for such project and then outstanding, the redevelopment authority shall take over a planned or existing urban renewal project initiated by a housing authority. The initiating authority shall use its best efforts promptly to secure the consent of all such holders and, all necessary consents having been secured, shall promptly execute an agreement with the authority which is to take over such project. Thereupon such authority shall assume, exercise, continue, perform and carry out all undertakings, obligations, duties, rights, powers, plans and activities with respect to such project and the authority which initiated the project shall have no powers and duties with respect to such project.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 52 - Accounts and Reports of Urban Renewal Agencies; Civil Service Rules

Section 52. Each urban renewal agency shall keep an accurate account of all its activities, receipts and expenditures in connection with the planning and execution of urban renewal projects and shall annually in the month of January make a report of such activities, receipts and expenditures to the department, the state auditor and the mayor of the city or to the selectmen of the town within which such authority is organized, such reports to be in a form prescribed by the department and approved by the state auditor; provided, that such form shall not be inconsistent with any federal legislation and shall conform as closely as may be to such legislation. The department or state auditor shall have the power to examine into the properties and records of urban renewal agencies and to prescribe methods of accounting, not inconsistent with federal legislation, for such activities, receipts and expenditures.
A veteran, as defined in section one of chapter thirty-one, who holds an office or position in the service of a redevelopment authority not classified under said chapter thirty-one, and has held such office or position for not less than three years, shall not be involuntarily separated from such office or position except subject to and in accordance with the provisions of sections forty-one to forty-five, inclusive of said chapter thirty-one to the same extent as if said office or position were classified under said chapter. If the separation in the case of such unclassified offices or positions results from lack of work or lack of money, such a veteran shall not be separated from his office or position while similar offices or positions in the same group or grade, as defined in section forty-five of chapter thirty, exist unless all such offices or positions are held by such veterans, in which case such separation shall occur in the inverse order of their respective original appointments.
No person permanently employed by a redevelopment authority, who is not classified under chapter thirty-one, shall, after having actually performed the duties of his office or position for a period of six months, be discharged, removed, suspended, laid off, transferred from the latest office or employment held by him without his consent, lowered in rank or compensation, nor shall his office or position be abolished, except for just cause and in the manner provided by sections forty-one to forty-five, inclusive, of chapter thirty-one.
Any employee who has transferred from a housing authority to a redevelopment authority in the same city or town shall, for the purposes of this section, be credited for the period of time in which he was employed by a housing authority.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 53 - Application for Urban Renewal Assistance Grant or Urban Revitalization and Development Grant

Section 53. Any city or town, acting by and through its urban renewal agency, may apply to the department for an urban renewal assistance grant to meet in part the cost of an approved urban renewal project. Any city or town, acting by and through its urban renewal agency, may apply to the department for an urban revitalization and development grant to meet in part the cost of an approved urban revitalization and development project. Such application shall be in the form prescribed by the department, and shall be accompanied by such additional information, drawings, plans, reports, estimates and exhibits as the department may require. The department may make such rules and regulations as are necessary to effectuate the purposes of this section and sections fifty-four to fifty-seven, inclusive.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 54 - State Aid for Urban Renewal; Determination of Compliance and Final Approved Cost; Notice

Section 54. Upon receipt of an application under the provisions of section fifty-three the department shall examine such application and any facts, estimates or other information relative thereto, and shall determine whether the proposed project complies with the provisions of the general laws and with rules and regulations prescribed in accordance therewith governing the approval and administration of urban renewal assistance grants or urban revitalization and development grants. Upon the determination of satisfactory compliance, the department shall determine the estimated approved cost of such project, and compute the amount of the urban renewal assistance grant or urban revitalization and development grant to which the city or town would be entitled under section fifty-five.
Within a reasonable time after receipt of such application, the department shall notify such city or town of its approval or rejection thereof, and, in the event of its rejection, of the reasons therefor. If the department rejects such application, the city or town may elect to proceed with such project without the benefit of said urban renewal assistance grant or urban revitalization and development grant. Notice of approval hereunder shall be accompanied by a statement of the estimated approved cost as determined by the department and an estimate of the amount of urban renewal assistance grant or urban revitalization and development grant to which such city or town may be entitled under the provisions of section fifty-five.
The final approved cost shall be determined by the department within a reasonable time after the completion of the urban renewal project by the urban renewal agency.
If the determination of the final approved cost is delayed because the project is not completed, the payments preceding determination of the final approved cost may be based upon the estimated approved cost, and adjustments shall be made in the payment or payments which are made subsequent to the determination of the final approved cost.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 55 - State Aid for Urban Renewal; Certification and Payment of Grants

Section 55. From time to time, the department shall certify to the comptroller, and the state treasurer shall, within thirty days after each such certification, pay to the several cities and towns, from any amounts appropriated therefor, the amounts due them in accordance with the following clauses:—
(a) Certification may be made only of projects with respect to which contracts for federal capital grants under Title I of the Federal Housing Act of 1949, as amended, have been signed.
(b) The total urban renewal assistance grant for any approved federally-aided project as defined in clause (a) shall not exceed one half of the local share of the contribution required from the municipality under the federal capital grant contract or more than one sixth of the net project cost when the municipality pays for administrative planning and legal expenses as a part of the gross project cost.
(c) The total urban renewal assistance grant to be paid under the provisions of this section shall be payable in twenty equal annual installments, except that the department may adjust the annual payment upon final determination of the net cost of each approved project.
(d) The total amount of urban renewal assistance grants to be paid under this section shall not exceed $4,500,000 in any one fiscal year or a total of $70,000,000 in the aggregate.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 56 - State Aid for Urban Renewal; Contract to Provide Financial Assistance

Section 56. The commonwealth, acting by and through the department, may contract with the cities and towns of the commonwealth, acting by and through urban renewal agencies to provide financial assistance for residential, commercial including the conduct of a trade or business by governmental or nonprofit entities or industrial urban renewal projects as authorized by the provisions of this chapter. Such state financial assistance may be provided only for projects which are to be redeveloped for residential, commercial or industrial reuse, and which projects are ineligible for federal capital grants under federal legislation or for which a grant application has been denied. In determining whether a project is rendered ineligible for federal capital-grant assistance, the provisions of federal legislation permitting a limited amount of redevelopment for nonresidential uses need not be considered unless federal funds have been made available under such provisions.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 57 - State Aid for Urban Renewal; Advance of Funds; Amount; Payments

Section 57. The department may make advances of funds to local urban renewal agencies for up to seventy-five per cent of the estimated cost of surveys and plans and administrative expenses in preparation of projects which may be assisted under this section, and contracts for such advances of funds shall be made upon the condition that such advances of funds shall be repaid out of any moneys which become available to such agency for the undertaking of the project or projects under this section and section fifty-six.
The contracts referred to in section fifty-six shall provide for a state grant-in-aid equal to one half of the net cost of each project as determined by the department. Any such contract shall provide that no state grant-in-aid shall be made until the city or town shall have appropriated the funds required for the entire project cost excluding funds otherwise available.
From time to time the department shall certify to the state comptroller, and the state treasurer shall, within thirty days after such certification, pay to the several cities and towns, from any amounts appropriated therefor, the amounts due them in accordance with the provisions of section fifty-six and of the following clauses:—
(a) The total state grant-in-aid for any approved project shall not exceed one half of the net cost of project, including advances for surveys, planning and administrative expenses, with respect to which a contract under the provisions of section fifty-six and this section has been signed.
(b) The total amount of urban renewal assistance grants or urban revitalization and development grants to be paid under the provisions of this section shall be payable in twenty equal annual installments, except that the department may deduct any advances of funds for surveys and plans and administrative expenses from the commonwealth's share before determining said twenty equal annual installments, and may adjust the annual payment upon final determination of the net cost of each approved project.
(c) The total amount of urban renewal assistance grants to be paid under the provisions of this section shall not exceed one million dollars in any one fiscal year or a total of twenty million dollars in the aggregate, including amounts authorized by the department to be advanced for the estimated expenses as provided in the first paragraph.
(d) The total amount of urban revitalization and development grants to be paid under this section shall not exceed $4,400,000 in any 1 fiscal year or a total of $60,000,000 in the aggregate, including amounts authorized by the department to be advanced for the estimated expenses as provided in the first paragraph.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121b - Housing and Urban Renewal › Section 58 - Other Urban Renewal Programs; Declaration of Necessity

Section 58. It is hereby declared (a) that there exist in certain cities and towns in the commonwealth substandard dwelling houses in urban renewal project areas which constitute a serious and growing menace and create a housing shortage, injurious to the public health, safety, morals and welfare of the residents of the commonwealth, and the declarations heretofore made in this chapter with respect to such areas are hereby reaffirmed; (b) that while many of such dwelling houses may require acquisition and clearance as provided in this chapter because their state of deterioration may make impracticable their reclamation by conservation or rehabilitation, others in such areas are in such condition that they may, through the means provided in section fifty-nine, be conserved or rehabilitated in such a manner that the conditions and evils hereinbefore enumerated may be alleviated or eliminated so that such dwelling houses may be returned to or remain in private ownership and be available as decent, safe and sanitary housing; and (c) that all powers conferred by said section fifty-nine are for public uses and purposes for which public money may be expended.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121c - Economic Development and Industrial Corporations › Section 4 - Corporate Seal; Officers; Bond; Accounts; Annual Audit and Report; Management of Affairs and Property

Section 4. The directors of the corporation shall adopt a corporate seal for the corporation, and designate the custodian thereof; may from time to time appoint and at pleasure remove a clerk, a treasurer or such other officers of the corporation as they may deem necessary, and may determine their duties and their compensation, which shall be paid by the corporation; shall cause at all times accurate accounts to be kept of all receipts and expenditures of the funds of the corporation; and shall make a report annually in December to the municipality, MOBD and to the director, containing an abstract of such accounts and detailed information of all receipts and expenditures, including prices paid for land purchased or taken and any buildings constructed thereon, contracts for construction of facilities and for the leasing thereof, and such other detailed information as may be deemed helpful. The office of treasurer and clerk may be held by the same person. The corporation shall cause an audit of its books and accounts to be made at least once in each fiscal year by certified public accountants and the cost thereof shall be treated as an item of current expense. Except as otherwise provided in this act, the corporation shall have full power to exercise care of its property and the management of its business and affairs, and to sell and convey any real estate or other property not needed for its business or affairs, by deed or other instrument sealed with the corporate seal, signed and acknowledged by a majority of the board of directors or in like manner to authorize such sale and conveyance by any of its officers or agents. The treasurer shall give bond for the faithful performance of his duties, with a surety company authorized to do business in this commonwealth as surety, in such sum as the said board may determine, the premium therefor to be paid by the corporation. Neither chapter thirty-one nor any rule made thereunder shall apply to any person employed or engaged by the corporation under this act.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121c - Economic Development and Industrial Corporations › Section 6 - Economic Development Projects; Approval; Procedural Requisites

Section 6. No economic development project shall be undertaken until (a) a public hearing relating to the economic development plan covering such project has been held by the corporation after due notice; (b) the economic development plan has been approved by the municipality by an affirmative two thirds vote of the city council with the approval of the mayor or city manager, as the case may be in a city or by an affirmative two thirds vote of an annual town meeting or a special town meeting called for the purpose in a town. If no economic development project covered by an economic development plan is commenced within seven years after the approval of such plan, the approval of such plan shall lapse.
Every economic development plan submitted to the municipality for approval under this act (i) shall require that every person occupying the whole or any part of the economic development area covered by such plan during the period of forty years after the approval of such plan shall make every reasonable effort, in employing persons in his business, to give to the fullest practicable extent preference to residents of the municipality and (ii) shall be accompanied by a report on such plan by the planning agency of the municipality to whom such plan shall have been submitted before its submission to the municipality by a statement of the proposed method for financing each project covered by such plan, by a comprehensive relocation plan and by such other information as the corporation deems advisable.
Notice of the public hearing required by the first paragraph of this section shall be given by the corporation to (1) such persons, groups and organizations as have requested in writing that such notice be given them, (2) MOBD and director and agency, whether of the city or of the commonwealth, likely in the judgment of the corporation to have an actual or potential interest in the economic development plan, (3) the senator for every senatorial district of the commonwealth, and the representative for every representative district thereof, within which the economic development area or any part thereof lies, and (4) each community group supported in whole or in part by public funds, whose territory covers all or part of the economic development area. In the course of preparing an economic development plan, the corporation shall consult with each of the aforesaid so far as in the judgment of the corporation it is practicable.
If an economic development plan is so approved by the municipality the corporation shall have the powers and duties imposed by this act to undertake and carry out the economic development projects covered by such plan. The corporation shall not be required to submit an economic development plan so approved to the department of housing and community development for further approval.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121c - Economic Development and Industrial Corporations › Section 7 - Rents and Charges for Service or Facilities Furnished or Supplied; Control and Application; Sinking Fund for Revenue Bond Obligations

Section 7. Except as provided herein rents and charges for services or facilities furnished or supplied by the corporation shall not be subject to supervision or regulation by any department, division, commission, board, bureau or agency of the commonwealth or any political subdivision thereof, and, if derived from a project in connection with which revenue bonds have been issued, shall, with all other revenues derived from the project, except such part thereof as may be necessary to pay such cost of maintenance, repair and operation and to provide such reserves therefor as may be provided for in the resolution authorizing the issuance of the bonds or in the trust agreement, but including such part thereof as may be necessary to provide such reserves for the payment of the principal of and the interest on said revenue bonds as may be provided for in such resolution or trust agreement, and including also the proceeds of any and all sales by the corporation of property within the project area, be set aside at such regular intervals as may be provided for in such resolution or trust agreement, in a sinking fund which is hereby pledged to and charged with the payment of (1) the interest upon such bonds as such interest shall fall due, (2) the principal of the bonds as the same shall fall due, (3) the necessary charges of paying agents for paying principal and interest, and (4) the redemption price or the purchase price of bonds retired by call or purchase as therein provided.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121c - Economic Development and Industrial Corporations › Section 8 - Corporate Liability in Contract or in Tort

Section 8. The corporation shall be liable in contract or in tort in the same manner as a private corporation. The directors, employees, officers and agents of the corporation shall not be liable as such on its contracts or for torts not committed or directly authorized by them. The property or funds of the corporation shall not be subject to attachment or to levy and sale on execution, but if the corporation 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 corporation is situated, may, by writ of mandamus, direct the treasurer of such agency to pay such judgment. The real estate of the corporation shall not be subject to liens under chapter two hundred fifty-four but the provisions of sections twenty-eight and twenty-nine of chapter one hundred forty-nine shall be applicable to any construction work by the corporation.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XVII - Public Welfare › Chapter 121c - Economic Development and Industrial Corporations › Section 9 - Real Estate and Tangible Personal Property Exempt From Taxation and Assessments; Payments in Lieu of Taxes; Taxation of Certain Real Estate; Exemption of Income or Profits From Transfer of Corporation Obligations

Section 9. The real estate and tangible personal property of the corporation shall be deemed to be public property used for essential public and governmental purposes and shall be exempt from taxation and from betterments and special assessments; provided, that in lieu of such taxes, betterments and special assessments, the municipality may determine a sum to be paid to it annually in any year or period of years, such sum to be in any year not in excess of the amount that would be levied at the then current tax rate upon the average of the assessed value of such real estate, including buildings and other structures, for the three years preceding the year of acquisition thereof, the valuation for each year being reduced by all abatements thereon.
The municipality may, however, agree with the corporation upon the payments to be made, or the corporation may make and the municipality may accept such payments, the amount of which shall not in either case be subject to the foregoing limitation. The last paragraph of section six and all of section seven of chapter fifty-nine shall, so far as apt, be applicable to payments under this section.
Nothing in this act shall be construed to prevent the taxation to the same extent and in the same manner as other real estate is taxed, of real estate acquired by the corporation for an economic development project and sold by it, or the taxation to the same extent and in the same manner as real estate of the commonwealth is taxed, of real estate so acquired by the corporation and leased by it; provided, however, that real estate so acquired by the corporation and sold or leased to an urban redevelopment corporation or other entity operating under chapter one hundred twenty-one A or to an insurance company or savings bank or group of savings banks operating under said chapter, shall be taxed as provided in said chapter and not otherwise.
The corporation and the debentures, revenue bonds and revenue refunding bonds issued under the provisions of this act, their transfer and the income therefrom including any profit made on the sale thereof, shall at all times be free from taxation by the commonwealth or any subdivision thereof.