Massachusetts 2025-2026 Regular Session

Massachusetts House Bill H1530 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	1 of 1
2	2	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 2260 FILED ON: 1/15/2025
3	3	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1530
4	4	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
5	5	_________________
6	6	PRESENTED BY:
7	7	Bradley H. Jones, Jr.
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 relative to affordable housing and the preservation of a community's water resources.
13	13	_______________
14	14	PETITION OF:
15	15	NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Bradley H. Jones, Jr.20th Middlesex1/15/2025Kimberly N. Ferguson1st Worcester1/21/2025Paul K. Frost7th Worcester1/31/2025Todd M. Smola1st Hampden3/10/2025David F. DeCoste5th Plymouth1/28/2025David F. DeCoste5th Plymouth1/28/2025Hannah Kane11th Worcester1/30/2025 1 of 2
16	16	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 2260 FILED ON: 1/15/2025
17	17	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1530
18	18	By Representative Jones of North Reading, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 1530) of
19	19	Bradley H. Jones, Jr. and others relative to affordable housing and the preservation of
20	20	community water resources. Housing.
21	21	[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
22	22	SEE HOUSE, NO. 1345 OF 2023-2024.]
23	23	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
24	24	_______________
25	25	In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
26	26	(2025-2026)
27	27	_______________
28	28	An Act relative to affordable housing and the preservation of a community's water resources.
29	29	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
30	30	of the same, as follows:
31	31	1 Section 20 of chapter 40B, as appearing in the 2022 Official Edition, is hereby amended
32	32	2by striking the definition of “Consistent with local needs”, and inserting in place thereof the
33	33	3following new definition:-
34	34	4 “Consistent with local needs”, requirements and regulations shall be considered
35	35	5consistent with local needs if they are reasonable in view of the regional need for low and
36	36	6moderate income housing considered with the number of low income persons in the city or town
37	37	7affected and the need to protect the health or safety of the occupants of the proposed housing or
38	38	8of the residents of the city or town, to promote better site and building design in relation to the
39	39	9surroundings, to preserve the municipal water supply or the region’s natural water resources, or
40	40	10to preserve open spaces, and if such requirements and regulations are applied as equally as 2 of 2
41	41	11possible to both subsidized and unsubsidized housing. Requirements or regulations shall be
42	42	12consistent with local needs when imposed by a board of zoning appeals after a comprehensive
43	43	13hearing in a city or town where (1) low or moderate income housing exists which is in excess of
44	44	14ten percent of the housing units reported in the latest federal decennial census of the city or town
45	45	15or on sites comprising one and one half percent or more of the total land area zoned for
46	46	16residential, commercial or industrial use or (2) the application before the board would result in
47	47	17the commencement of construction of such housing on sites comprising more than three tenths of
48	48	18one percent of such land area or ten acres, whichever is larger, in any one calendar year;
49	49	19provided, however, that land area owned by the United States, the commonwealth or any
50	50	20political subdivision thereof, or any public authority shall be excluded from the total land area
51	51	21referred to above when making such determination of consistency with local needs.