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SENATE DOCKET, NO. 2930 FILED ON: 12/19/2023
SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 2545
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
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PRESENTED BY:
Patricia D. Jehlen
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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 authorizing the city of Somerville to regulate rent in residential dwelling units.
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PETITION OF:
NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :Patricia D. JehlenSecond MiddlesexChristine P. Barber34th MiddlesexErika Uyterhoeven27th MiddlesexMike Connolly26th Middlesex 1 of 5
SENATE DOCKET, NO. 2930 FILED ON: 12/19/2023
SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 2545
By Ms. Jehlen, a petition (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 2545) of Patricia D. Jehlen, Christine
P. Barber, Erika Uyterhoeven and Mike Connolly (with approval of the mayor and city council)
for legislation to authorize the city of Somerville to regulate rent in residential dwelling units.
Housing. [Local Approval Received.]
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 authorizing the city of Somerville to regulate rent in residential dwelling units.
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: Findings and Purpose.
2 WHEREAS: the City of Somerville (“the City”) is undergoing an emergency with respect
3to housing, in that there is an insufficient supply of housing affordable to its residents; and
4 WHEREAS: Residents have seen rents continue to raise, sometime at exorbitant rates;
5 and
6 WHEREAS: Income of Somerville residents has not kept pace with increasing rental
7costs; and
8 WHEREAS: The City wishes to enact this legislation to protect residents from excessive
9rent increases and evictions which pose serious threats to the public health, safety and generally
10welfare, including housing insecurity, rent burden, homelessness, and displacement; and 2 of 5
11 WHEREAS: The City seeks to address the housing emergency described above through
12legislation to stabilize rents and prevent evictions.
13 SECTION 2: Power for local rent regulation. The City may, by ordinance, regulate the
14rent in residential dwelling units and provide for reasonable exemption from such regulation:
15 (a) This section shall not apply to the following types of residential properties or
16residential circumstances:
17 (i) Properties with 3 or fewer dwelling units in which one of the dwelling units is the
18owner’s principal residence;
19 (ii) Dwelling units which were created as a result of ground up new construction and for
20which the first residential certificate of occupancy was issued not more than twelve months prior
21to the passage of a local ordinance authorized hereunder shall be exempt for a period of 15 years
22from the date at which such certificate of occupancy was issued;
23 (iii) Dwelling units with (a) rent subject to regulation by a public authority or a public
24housing-affiliated limited liability corporation or other similar public housing affiliated corporate
25entity, such that rent is based on a percentage of tenant income and (b) project-based rental
26subsidies where rent is based on a percentage of tenant income. Occupancy by tenants with
27mobile vouchers in otherwise non-exempt units does not render a unit exempt;
28 (iv) Dwelling units in which the tenant shares bathroom or kitchen facilities with the
29owner who maintains their principal residence at the residential real property;
30 (v) Housing accommodations in a nonprofit hospital, religious facility, extended care
31facility, or licensed residential care facility for the elderly; 3 of 5
32 (vi) Units in hotels, motels, or other facilities occupied by transient guests; and
33 (vii) Dormitories owned and operated by an institution of higher education.
34 (b) In addition to the exemptions described in (a) above, the City in its discretion may,
35create an exemption for vulnerable seniors who vacated their owner occupied unit in their two or
36three family property, for health or other reasons beyond their immediate control. The City may
37by ordinance, order, or regulation define any necessary terms to effectuate this exemption.
38 (c) The City, on an annual basis, may set an annual maximum percentage rent increase
39for rental units covered by this Section, based on the increase in the consumer price index if any,
40plus two percent, but in no event shall an annual increase be greater than 5%. “Consumer price
41index” refers to the annual 12-month average change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban
42Consumers, Boston-Cambridge-Newton (All Items), as published by the Bureau of Labor
43Statistics of the United States Department of Labor in September of the prior calendar year.
44 (d) For rental dwelling units covered by this section, the rent amount in place 12 months
45prior to the effective date of the ordinance shall serve as the base rent upon which any annual
46rent increase shall be applied. If the dwelling unit is vacant on the effective date of the ordinance,
47the last rent amount charged shall serve as the base rent. If there was no previous rent amount, or
48if no rent has been charged for at least five years prior to the effective date of the ordinance, the
49rent amount the owner first charges shall serve as the base rent.
50 i. The City may by ordinance, order, or regulation, establish a process for setting the base
51rent for any unit that no longer qualifies for an exempt status under section 2(a). 4 of 5
52 ii. The City may by ordinance, order, or regulation, establish minimum standards and
53procedures for owners and tenants of any unit under section 2(a) that is converted to a non-
54exempt unit.
55 (e) The City may provide for fair return standards for the regulation of rent, which may
56include but are not limited to, changes to permissible rental rates based upon certain maintenance
57and capital costs, utility costs for which the owner is responsible, and rapid increases in property
58taxes.
59 (f) The City may set tenant notification and rental registration requirements as necessary
60to effectuate this section.
61 (g) The City shall establish or designate an administrator or board to promulgate
62regulations pursuant to this section and to govern and administer local rent regulation.
63 SECTION 3: Just cause eviction protections The provisions of this Section shall be
64applicable to all rental housing accommodations in the City; provided however, that the City
65may provide for exemptions from the provisions of this Section and any such exemptions shall
66be included in an ordinance adopted by the City. Unless otherwise exempt, a property owner
67must establish just cause in order to recover possession of residential leased premises within the
68City as determined by the Housing Court, District Court, or other Court of competent
69jurisdiction. At a minimum just cause for eviction shall include the following grounds:
70 (a)The tenant has failed to pay the rent to which the owner is entitled;
71 (b)The tenant has committed a substantial violation of a material lease term or term
72of the tenancy; 5 of 5
73 (c)The tenant is causing substantial damage to the leased unit;
74 (d)The tenant engages in criminal activity that threatens the health and safety of
75other residents, or persons lawfully on the premises;
76 (e)The owner seeks in good faith to recover possession of a leased unit for the
77owner’s own use and occupancy or for the use and occupancy by the owner’s spouse, children,
78grandchildren, great grandchildren, parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews,
79brothers, sisters, fathers-in-law, mothers-in law, sons-in-law, or daughters-in-law;
80 (f)The owner seeks to remove the unit from the rental market to convert to
81cooperative or condominium; and
82 (g) The owner seeks to demolish or convert to non-residential use.
83 SECTION 4: Relocation plans and payments: The City may, by ordinance, create
84requirements for relocation plans and tenant relocation payments where an owner(s) seeks to
85remove a tenant for reasons set forth in Sections 3(e) and (g).
86 SECTION 5: Severance Clause. The determination or declaration that any provision of
87this Act is beyond the authority of the general court or is preempted by law or regulation shall
88not affect the validity or enforceability of any other provisions.
89 SECTION 6: Effective Date. This act shall take effect immediately upon signing by the
90Governor.