Massachusetts 2023-2024 Regular Session

Massachusetts House Bill H3235 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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1	1	1 of 1
2	2	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 2914 FILED ON: 1/19/2023
3	3	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 3235
4	4	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
5	5	_________________
6	6	PRESENTED BY:
7	7	Tommy Vitolo
8	8	_________________
9	9	To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
10	10	Court assembled:
11	11	The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
12	12	An Act authorizing municipalities to impose a methane emissions surcharge and authorize non-
13	13	pipeline alternatives.
14	14	_______________
15	15	PETITION OF:
16	16	NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Tommy Vitolo15th Norfolk1/18/2023Kevin G. Honan17th Suffolk2/2/2023 1 of 7
17	17	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 2914 FILED ON: 1/19/2023
18	18	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 3235
19	19	By Representative Vitolo of Brookline, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 3235) of
20	20	Tommy Vitolo and Kevin G. Honan for legislation to authorize cities and towns to impose a
21	21	methane emissions surcharge and non-pipeline alternatives. Telecommunications, Utilities and
22	22	Energy.
23	23	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
24	24	_______________
25	25	In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
26	26	(2023-2024)
27	27	_______________
28	28	An Act authorizing municipalities to impose a methane emissions surcharge and authorize non-
29	29	pipeline alternatives.
30	30	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
31	31	of the same, as follows:
32	32	1 SECTION 1. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 53 of chapter 44 of the
33	33	2General Laws, or any other general or special law to the contrary, a city or town that accepts the
34	34	3provisions of this section pursuant to section 4 of chapter 4 of the General Laws shall establish a
35	35	4separate account to be known as the Emissions Reduction Fund of which the municipal treasurer
36	36	5shall be the custodian. The authority to approve expenditures from the fund shall be limited to
37	37	6the legislative body and the municipal treasurer shall pay such expenses in accordance with
38	38	7chapter 41 of the General Laws.
39	39	8 The following monies shall be deposited in the Emissions Reduction Fund: (i) all funds
40	40	9collected pursuant to local surcharges or bond proceeds in anticipation of revenue from such
41	41	10surcharges; (ii) all funds received from the commonwealth or any other source for such purposes;
42	42	11and (iii) proceeds from the disposition of a real property interest that was acquired with funds 2 of 7
43	43	12from the Emissions Reduction Fund. The treasurer may deposit or invest the proceeds of the fund
44	44	13in savings banks, trust companies incorporated under the laws of the commonwealth, banking
45	45	14companies incorporated under the laws of the commonwealth that are members of the Federal
46	46	15Deposit Insurance Corporation, or national banks, or may invest the proceeds in paid up shares
47	47	16and accounts of and in co-operative banks or in shares of savings and loan associations or in
48	48	17shares of federal savings and loan associations doing business in the commonwealth or in the
49	49	18manner authorized by section 54 of chapter 44 of the General Laws, and any income therefrom
50	50	19shall be credited to the fund.
51	51	20 (b) Municipal boards and commissions shall, from time to time, make recommendations
52	52	21to the legislative body of the municipality to fund programs or activities to promote emissions
53	53	22reductions. The boards and commissions may include in their recommendations to the legislative
54	54	23body of the municipality a recommendation to set aside for later spending funds for specific
55	55	24purposes that are consistent with emissions reduction but for which sufficient revenues are not
56	56	25then available in the Emissions Reduction Fund to accomplish that specific purpose or to set
57	57	26aside for later spending funds for general purposes that are consistent with emissions reduction.
58	58	27 (c) After receiving such recommendations from municipal boards and commissions, the
59	59	28legislative body of the municipality may then take such action and approve such appropriations
60	60	29from the Emissions Reduction Fund established pursuant to subsection (a) in an amount not to
61	61	30exceed the amounts recommended; provided, however, that nothing herein shall be deemed to
62	62	31constrain the legislative body of the municipality from appropriating such additional amounts as
63	63	32it deems appropriate to carry out the recommendations from a source other than the Emissions
64	64	33Reduction Fund. 3 of 7
65	65	34 (d) A real property interest that is purchased with monies from the Emissions Reduction
66	66	35Fund shall be bound by a permanent deed restriction that meets the requirements of chapter 184
67	67	36of the General Laws, limiting the use of the property to the purpose for which it was acquired.
68	68	37The deed restriction shall run with the land and shall be enforceable by the municipality. The
69	69	38deed restriction may also run to the benefit of a nonprofit, charitable corporation or foundation
70	70	39selected by the municipality with the right to enforce the restriction.
71	71	40 (e) Real property interests acquired under this section shall be owned and managed by the
72	72	41municipality, but the legislative body of the municipality may delegate management of such
73	73	42property to any other municipal board or commission, as it may deem appropriate. The
74	74	43legislative body of the municipality may also delegate management of such property to a
75	75	44nonprofit organization created under chapter 180 or chapter 203 of the General Laws.
76	76	45 (f) The municipal treasurer shall keep a full and accurate account of all appropriations or
77	77	46expenditures made from the Emissions Reduction Fund. The municipal treasurer shall also keep
78	78	47records of any real property interests acquired, disposed of, or improved by the municipality,
79	79	48including the names and addresses of the grantors or grantees and the nature and amount of the
80	80	49consideration paid. The records and accounts shall be public records.
81	81	50 (g) Funds in the Emissions Reduction Fund may be made available and used by the
82	82	51municipality as the local share for state or federal grants upon approval by the legislative body of
83	83	52the municipality.
84	84	53 (h) The Emissions Reduction Fund shall have a limit of $15,000,000 in inflation-adjusted
85	85	542022 dollars, for unallocated funds. If at the end of any fiscal year there are more dollars in the
86	86	55fund than the limit, excluding: (1) any portion of funds already allocated by the legislative body 4 of 7
87	87	56of the municipality; (2) any portion of funds deposited within that fiscal year; and (3) any portion
88	88	57of funds provided by the commonwealth rather than from local revenue, such excess shall be
89	89	58transferred to the municipality’s free cash. The legislative body of the municipality may modify
90	90	59the limit.
91	91	60 (i) At any point more than 5 years after its establishment, the legislative body of the
92	92	61municipality may choose to terminate the Emissions Reduction Fund. If terminating the
93	93	62Emissions Reduction Fund, the legislative body of the municipality may transfer remaining
94	94	63funds to other funds or to free cash, and may choose whether to terminate individual programs
95	95	64generating revenue for the Fund or to redirect those programs to generate revenue for another
96	96	65purpose.
97	97	66 SECTION 2. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of any general or special law to the
98	98	67contrary, a city or town that accepts the provisions of this section pursuant to section 4 of chapter
99	99	684 of the General Laws may impose a surcharge on the use of natural gas within the municipality.
100	100	69The surcharge shall apply to all properties in the municipality served by gas companies as
101	101	70defined in section 1 of chapter 164 of the General Laws. The surcharge shall be assessed and
102	102	71collected on gas bills for properties located in the municipality. The amount of such surcharge, to
103	103	72be determined by legislative body of the municipality, shall be no greater than 25 per cent of all
104	104	73charges for gas service on the customer’s bill.
105	105	74 (b) There shall be a complete exemption from the natural gas surcharge for qualifying
106	106	75residential customers who already receive a means-tested discounted rate from the utility, or for
107	107	76qualifying residential customers whose income in the immediately prior year was less than 200
108	108	77per cent of the area median income, provided that the legislative body of the municipality may 5 of 7
109	109	78increase this percentage. For the purposes of this section, the term “area median income” shall
110	110	79mean the median family income for the Boston-Cambridge-Quincy area, adjusted for family size,
111	111	80as established by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. The
112	112	81exemption shall be applied to the primary residence of the taxpayer only.
113	113	82 (c) Customers shall qualify for the exemption if all the following criteria are met:
114	114	83 (i) the applicant or joint applicants’ prior year income would make the applicant or
115	115	84joint applicants eligible for the exemption; or the applicant or joint applicants receive gas service
116	116	85from the utility under a means-tested discounted rate; or the applicant or joint applicants are
117	117	86qualified participants in the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program administered by the
118	118	87department of housing and community development;
119	119	88 (ii) the qualifying residential property is occupied by the applicant or joint applicants as
120	120	89their primary residence; and
121	121	90 (iii) applicants complete annual certification, meeting the stated criteria relative to
122	122	91income and residency.
123	123	92 (d) The legislative body of the municipality may wholly or partially exempt any set of
124	124	93gas utility customers from this surcharge, and a locally established Emissions Reduction Fund
125	125	94may wholly or partially reimburse any resident for a surcharge paid by their condominium
126	126	95association or landlord.
127	127	96 (e) Upon initial connection to gas service, and every April thereafter, the utility shall
128	128	97provide an application, the contents of which shall be created in consultation with and subject to
129	129	98the approval of either the municipal treasurer or the municipal assessor, to determine whether a 6 of 7
130	130	99customer qualifies for a total or partial exemption from the surcharge. A person who seeks to
131	131	100qualify for an exemption shall complete said application. Qualifying applicants shall be entitled
132	132	101to the exemption. The application shall be completed in each year for which the applicant seeks
133	133	102the exemption.
134	134	103 (f) The gas company shall collect all amounts received pursuant to the surcharge
135	135	104established in subsection (a) and maintain them in a segregated account. The gas company shall
136	136	105remit all funds collected under the surcharge no later than the 15th of the month following
137	137	106receipt of such amounts, to the Emissions Reduction Fund established by the municipality. Late
138	138	107payments of the surcharge shall be exempt from the calculation of any late payment charges
139	139	108otherwise authorized for utility bills. Annually, the gas company shall provide an audited report
140	140	109to the municipality of all collections and disbursements of funds made pursuant to this act.
141	141	110 SECTION 3. (a) Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, a gas
142	142	111company as defined in section 1 of chapter 164 of the General Laws shall offer a program of
143	143	112financing for alternatives to the gas company’s distribution of natural gas to all gas customers in
144	144	113a city or town that accepts the provisions of this section pursuant to section 4 of chapter 4 of the
145	145	114General Laws. Such program shall include, but need not be limited to, financing for:
146	146	115 (i) the sale or lease, installation and servicing of ground source or air source heat pumps
147	147	116and other electric heating or cooling devices;
148	148	117 (ii) the sale or lease, installation and servicing of electric appliances to replace or
149	149	118supplement gas appliances, including but not limited to hot water heaters, dryers and ranges; and
150	150	119 (iii) the sale or lease, installation and servicing of renewable energy storage and
151	151	120generation equipment. 7 of 7
152	152	121 (b) The gas company shall offer on-bill financing for the non-pipeline alternatives
153	153	122provided for in subsection (a) and may also base all or portions of the financing costs for these
154	154	123investments if they serve to accelerate electrification.
155	155	124 (c) A gas company may, subject to all applicable local by-laws and regulations, engage in
156	156	125renewable energy generation and storage in the municipality.