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HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3213 FILED ON: 1/20/2023
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 3923
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
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PRESENTED BY:
William J. Driscoll, Jr.
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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 addressing the requirement that multi-family districts in MBTA communities be within
0.5 miles of a commuter rail station, subway station, ferry terminal or bus station.
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PETITION OF:
NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:William J. Driscoll, Jr.7th Norfolk1/20/2023 1 of 3
HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3213 FILED ON: 1/20/2023
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 3923
By Representative Driscoll of Milton, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 3923) of
William J. Driscoll, Jr., that zoning ordinances in MBTA communities require certain housing be
located within high-capacity public transportation areas. Municipalities and Regional
Government.
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 addressing the requirement that multi-family districts in MBTA communities be within
0.5 miles of a commuter rail station, subway station, ferry terminal or bus station.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:
1 Chapter 40A of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out section 3A, as
2appearing in the 2022 Official Edition, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-
3 (a) For the purposes of this section the following words shall, unless the context clearly
4requires otherwise, have the following meanings:
5 “Bus rapid transport terminal”, a bus rapid transit stop serving as a point of embarkation
6along a bus rapid transit corridor for a high capacity bus rapid transport system that either meets
7the standards of a bus rapid transit system set forth by the Institute for Transportation and
8Development Policy or the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s silver line.
9 “Commuter rail station”, a transit stop that provides year-round commuter rail service. 2 of 3
10 “Ferry terminal”, a transit stop where passengers board and disembark a Massachusetts
11Bay Transportation Authority ferry service.
12 “High capacity public transportation area”, a bus rapid transport terminal, a commuter
13rail station, a ferry terminal or rapid transit station.
14 “Rapid transit station”, Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s green, red, blue
15and orange subway stations, but not including the Ashmont-Mattapan High-Speed trolley line
16and stations.
17 (b) An MBTA community shall have a zoning ordinance or by-law that provides for at
18least 1 district of reasonable size in which multi-family housing is permitted as of right provided,
19however, that such multi-family housing shall be without age restrictions and shall be suitable
20for families with children. A district of reasonable size shall be located within a high capacity
21public transportation area and be both of the following:
22 (i) a minimum gross density of 15 units per acre, subject to any further limitations
23imposed by section 40 of chapter 131 and title 5 of the state environmental code established
24pursuant to section 13 of chapter 21A; and
25 (ii) the entire district shall be located on not more than 0.5 miles of contiguous land area
26from the geographic center point of a rapid transit station, commuter rail station, bus rapid
27transport terminal or ferry terminals.
28 (c) An MBTA community that fails to comply with this section shall not be eligible for
29funds from: (i) the Housing Choice Initiative as described by the governor in a message to the
30general court dated December 11, 2017; (ii) the Local Capital Projects Fund established in 3 of 3
31section 2EEEE of chapter 29; or (iii) the MassWorks infrastructure program established in
32section 63 of chapter 23A.
33 (d) The department of housing and community development, in consultation with the
34Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and the Massachusetts Department of
35 Transportation, shall promulgate guidelines to determine if an MBTA community is in
36compliance with this section.