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HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3561 FILED ON: 1/20/2023
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 2748
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_________________
PRESENTED BY:
Mike Connolly
_________________
To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:
The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
An Act facilitating housing for all.
_______________
PETITION OF:
NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Mike Connolly26th Middlesex1/20/2023Bud L. Williams11th Hampden1/20/2023Lindsay N. Sabadosa1st Hampshire1/20/2023David Henry Argosky LeBoeuf17th Worcester2/23/2023 1 of 7
HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3561 FILED ON: 1/20/2023
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 2748
By Representative Connolly of Cambridge, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 2748) of
Mike Connolly and others for legislation to establish a homelessness prevention and reduction
fund to be funded by taxes on gross receipts of business entities. Revenue.
[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
SEE HOUSE, NO. 2855 OF 2021-2022.]
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
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In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
(2023-2024)
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An Act facilitating housing for all.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:
1 SECTION 1. Chapter 10 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after
2section 35DDD the following section:-
3 Section 35FFF. (a) There shall be established and set up on the books of the
4commonwealth a separate fund to be known as the Housing First and Housing for All Fund,
5hereafter referred to as the Fund. The Fund shall consist of all revenues, including all taxes,
6penalties, interest and fees received by the commonwealth pursuant to chapter 63D. The state
7treasurer shall be the custodian of the Fund and shall credit interest and earnings on the Fund to
8the Fund. All amounts credited to the Fund shall be maintained separate and apart from all other
9funds and shall be subject to appropriation. Any balance remaining in the Fund at the close of 2 of 7
10any fiscal year shall be carried forward and accumulated in the Fund to be used in future fiscal
11years for the purposes described in subsection (b).
12 (b) Monies in the Fund shall be appropriated on an annual or supplemental basis and used
13exclusively for the following purposes:
14 (i) The administration or oversight of the housing first and housing for all gross receipts
15tax, hereafter referred to as the "gross receipts tax", established under chapter 63D; the
16administration and oversight of this Fund; and the administration of the annual reports required
17in subsection (c); provided, however, that no more than 3 per cent of total annual revenue from
18the gross receipts tax shall be expended for such purposes annually;
19 (ii) Refunds of any overpayments of the gross receipts tax, including any related
20penalties, interests, and fees; and
21 (iii) The prevention and reduction of homelessness and the elimination of barriers to
22quality affordable housing, including, but not limited to, programs that:
23 (A) help adults, families, or youth who are experiencing homelessness, including but not
24limited to people who are experiencing homelessness and have mental health conditions or are
25struggling with substance use, to permanently exit homelessness and secure permanent housing,
26including through Housing First Programs and wraparound services.
27 (B) ensure that unhoused persons with barriers to housing, including but not limited to a
28lack of identification and documentation, are able to access housing;
29 (C) provide rental subsidies for both short- and long-term rentals, including an expansion
30of the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program; 3 of 7
31 (D) support the construction, acquisition, rehabilitation, lease, preservation, and operation
32of emergency, short-term and permanent housing units;
33 (E) provide onsite supportive services for formerly houseless adults, families, and youth;
34 (F) protect extremely low and very low-income households, especially households with
35seniors, veterans or persons with disabilities;
36 (G) provide financial, utility or rental assistance, including but not limited to assistance to
37address or cancel debts accrued during the COVID-19 state of emergency, as well as short-term
38case management, conflict mediation, right to counsel or other legal representation in eviction
39cases and cases in housing court, connections to public benefit agencies, housing search
40assistance, small landlord technical assistance programs, and other support services and
41programs relevant to ensuring guaranteed housing for all.
42 (H) provide mental and behavioral health services for unhoused individuals, including the
43acquisition or leasing of facilities to provide such services;
44 (I) support public investments in community land trusts, publicly-owned housing, social
45housing, deed-restricted affordable housing, limited equity cooperative housing, partnerships that
46increase the availability of affordable housing, municipal affordable housing trust funds, and
47programs that support the decommodification of housing, including but not limited to, the
48servicing of debt incurred by capital expenditures related to the acquisition, development,
49preservation, and rehabilitation of these types of housing.
50 (J) support down payment assistance and other programs for first-time and first-
51generation homebuyers to help address multigenerational inequities in access to homeownership. 4 of 7
52 (c) Not later than February 15, 2025 and every year thereafter, the commissioner of
53revenue shall report the amount remaining in the Fund from the previous fiscal year, an update of
54revenues for the current fiscal year and the estimates of revenues to be credited to the Fund in the
55subsequent fiscal year. The commissioner of revenue shall file this report with the secretary of
56administration and finance, the secretary of housing and economic development, the chair of the
57house committee on ways and means, the chair of the senate committee on ways and means, the
58chairs of the joint committee on housing and the chairs of the joint committee on revenue.
59 Beginning in fiscal year 2026 and each fiscal year thereafter, the state auditor shall issue
60a report on appropriations made from the Fund in the prior fiscal year. The auditor shall include
61in the report, at a minimum, the percentage of total appropriations intended for housing and
62housing support services drawn from the Fund as compared to appropriations for such purposes
63not drawn from the fund. The report shall compare the latter to appropriations made for such
64purposes in fiscal year 2024, which shall serve as the "base year''. If non-Fund appropriations for
65such purposes in the fiscal year for which the report is generated are significantly lower than the
66base year, after taking into account inflation, the state auditor shall note the discrepancy.
67 The state auditor may audit any organization or agency receiving appropriations from the
68Fund to ensure that the appropriations were used for their intended purpose. The state auditor
69shall submit all audit reports regarding the Fund to the secretary of administration and finance,
70the secretary of housing and economic development, the secretary of transportation, the chair of
71the house committee on ways and means, the chair of the senate committee on ways and means,
72the chairs of the joint committee on housing, and the chairs of the joint committee on revenue. 5 of 7
73 SECTION 2. The General Laws are hereby amended by adding the following chapter:-
74CHAPTER 63D.
75 HOUSING FIRST AND HOUSING FOR ALL GROSS RECEIPTS TAX
76 Section 1. For the purposes of this chapter, the following terms shall, unless the context
77clearly requires otherwise, have the following meanings:
78 "Business entity", any corporation, partnership, limited liability company, limited
79liability partnership or other such pass-through entity, or any individual, association or trust
80engaged in business in the commonwealth and subject to tax under chapters 62 or 63.
81 "Commissioner", the commissioner of revenue.
82 "Engaged in business in the commonwealth" shall have the same meaning as found in
83section 1 of chapter 63; provided, however, that it shall be construed to include individuals
84conducting such business activities as described in said section 1 of said chapter 63 but who are
85taxed under chapter 62.
86 "Gross receipts", shall: (i) include the total amounts received or accrued by a business
87entity from whatever source derived, including, but not limited to, amounts derived from sales,
88services, dealings in property, interest, rent, royalties, dividends, licensing fees, other fees,
89commissions and distributed amounts from other business entities. Except as otherwise
90specifically provided in this chapter, gross receipts includes but is not limited to all amounts that
91constitute gross income for federal income tax purposes. Except as otherwise specifically
92provided in this chapter, gross receipts includes all receipts, cash, credits and property of any
93kind or nature and including any amount for which credit is allowed by the seller to the 6 of 7
94purchaser, without any deduction therefrom on account of the cost of the property sold, the cost
95of materials used, labor or service costs, interest paid or payable, losses or any other expense
96whatsoever, except that cash discounts allowed or taken on sales shall not be included as gross
97receipts; (ii) with respect to any lease or rental, include payment for any services that are part of
98the lease or rental, whether received in money or otherwise, that are paid to, on behalf of, or for
99the benefit of, the lessor, and all receipts, cash, credits, property of any kind or character and the
100fair market value of services so paid or rendered by the lessee; (iii) not include the amount of any
101federal, state, or local tax imposed on or with respect to retail sales whether imposed upon the
102retailer or upon the purchaser and regardless of whether the amount of tax is stated as a separate
103charge, or such part of the sales price of any property previously sold and returned by the
104purchaser to the seller which is refunded by the seller by way of cash or credit allowances given
105or taken as part payment on any property so accepted for resale. Gross receipts shall also not
106include any federal, state or local tax imposed upon a business entity for which that business
107entity is reimbursed by means of a separately stated charge to a purchaser, lessee, licensee or
108customer. Gross receipts shall not include any amount of third-party taxes that a taxpayer
109collects from or on behalf of the taxpayer's customers and remits to the appropriate governmental
110entity imposing such tax. Gross receipts shall not include any tax refunds received by a business
111entity from a governmental entity. Gross receipts shall include any federal, state or local tax not
112specifically excluded; (iv) not include any amount received from or charged to any business
113entity that is a related entity to the taxpayer. Nor shall gross receipts include any grants received
114from governmental entities or any gifts. Any gross receipts of a pass-through entity which is
115subject to the gross receipts tax shall not also constitute gross receipts of any owner of that
116entity. 7 of 7
117 Section 2. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, their shall be an annual 0.25 per
118cent tax on gross receipts of each business entity engaged in business in the commonwealth;
119provided, however, that there shall be an exemption on the first $50,000,000 of gross receipts
120received by each such business entity. This tax shall be known as the housing first and housing
121for all gross receipts tax and shall be referred to in this chapter as the "gross receipts tax".
122 Section 3. A business entity subject to the gross receipts tax under section 2 shall file
123returns at the same time and in the same manner as the income tax returns required to be filed by
124such business entity under chapter 62 or 63, whichever is applicable.
125 Section 4. The commissioner may, in his or her reasonable discretion, establish or
126reallocate gross receipts among related business entities so as to fairly reflect the gross receipts
127of all such business entities.
128 Section 5. All gross receipts tax revenues received by the commonwealth shall be
129deposited into the Housing First and Housing for All Fund established by section 35DDD of
130chapter 10.
131 SECTION 3. This act shall take effect on January 1, 2024.