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HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 484 FILED ON: 1/9/2025
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1543
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
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PRESENTED BY:
Kate Lipper-Garabedian
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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 improving municipal access to general existing housing data.
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PETITION OF:
NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Kate Lipper-Garabedian32nd Middlesex1/9/2025 1 of 3
HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 484 FILED ON: 1/9/2025
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1543
By Representative Lipper-Garabedian of Melrose, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No.
1543) of Kate Lipper-Garabedian for legislation to improve municipal access to general existing
housing data. Housing.
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
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In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
(2025-2026)
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An Act improving municipal access to general existing housing data.
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 23B of the general laws is hereby amended by adding after section
230, the following section:
3 Section 31 – Housing Data Reporting
4 (a)Notwithstanding any general or special laws to the contrary, the executive office shall
5collect and make available to municipalities, state agencies, and other state and regional public
6entities in a centralized, machine-readable, screen reader compatible database the following data
7for each new development with one or more units of subsidized housing in each municipality in
8the commonwealth:
9 (i) the total number of units;
10 (ii) the total number of units with long-term use restrictions limiting occupancy based on
11income and the total number of market rate units; 2 of 3
12 (iii) the total number of units with long-term use restrictions limiting occupancy to
13households with incomes at or below eighty percent, fifty percent, and thirty percent of area
14median income, respectively;
15 (iv) the term and end date of all long-term use restrictions based on income;
16 (v) the number of bedrooms and bathrooms per unit;
17 (vi) the gross and livable square footage per unit;
18 (vii) the location of the development, expressed as an address that can be matched to a
19geocoded record in a statewide address database maintained by the Commonwealth; provided,
20that, for scattered site developments, an address and unit count shall be reported for each
21separate parcel.
22 (b)Further, the executive office shall collect and make available to municipalities, state
23agencies, and other state and regional public entities in said centralized, machine-readable,
24screen reader compatible database the following data for each existing development which
25contains at least one unit of subsidized housing in each municipality in the commonwealth:
26 (i) the total number of units
27 (ii) the total number of units with long-term use restrictions based on income
28 (iii) the term and end date of long-term use restrictions based on income
29 (iv) the location of the development, expressed as an address that can be matched to a
30geocoded record in a statewide address database maintained by the Commonwealth; provided, 3 of 3
31that for scattered site developments, an address and unit count shall be reported for each separate
32parcel.
33 (c)The database established by this section shall be regularly maintained and updated,
34with each datum updated no less than annually for each municipality.
35 (d)Subsection (b) of section 31 of Chapter 23B of the General Laws is hereby repealed.
36 (e)Subsection (a) of section 31 of Chapter 23B of the General Laws is hereby amended
37by striking the word “new” where it appears after the word “each”
38 (f)Subsection (d) and (e) shall take effect December 31, 2027.