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| 2 | 2 | | HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 1983 FILED ON: 1/15/2025 |
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| 3 | 3 | | HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 3204 |
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| 4 | 4 | | The Commonwealth of Massachusetts |
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| 5 | 5 | | _________________ |
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| 6 | 6 | | PRESENTED BY: |
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| 7 | 7 | | James M. Murphy |
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| 8 | 8 | | _________________ |
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| 9 | 9 | | To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General |
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| 10 | 10 | | Court assembled: |
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| 11 | 11 | | The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill: |
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| 12 | 12 | | An Act reducing tax liability for grandparents raising grandchildren. |
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| 13 | 13 | | _______________ |
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| 14 | 14 | | PETITION OF: |
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| 15 | 15 | | NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:James M. Murphy4th Norfolk1/15/2025 1 of 2 |
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| 16 | 16 | | HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 1983 FILED ON: 1/15/2025 |
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| 17 | 17 | | HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 3204 |
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| 18 | 18 | | By Representative Murphy of Weymouth, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 3204) of |
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| 19 | 19 | | James M. Murphy for legislation to authorize cities and towns to establish a tax exemption or |
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| 20 | 20 | | abatement program for grandparents raising grandchildren. Revenue. |
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| 21 | 21 | | [SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION |
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| 22 | 22 | | SEE HOUSE, NO. 2904 OF 2023-2024.] |
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| 23 | 23 | | The Commonwealth of Massachusetts |
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| 24 | 24 | | _______________ |
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| 25 | 25 | | In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court |
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| 26 | 26 | | (2025-2026) |
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| 27 | 27 | | _______________ |
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| 28 | 28 | | An Act reducing tax liability for grandparents raising grandchildren. |
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| 29 | 29 | | Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority |
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| 30 | 30 | | of the same, as follows: |
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| 31 | 31 | | 1 Section 5 of Chapter 59 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2023 Official Edition, is |
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| 32 | 32 | | 2hereby amended by adding the following section: |
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| 33 | 33 | | 3 Section 5P: In any city or town which accepts the provisions of this section, the board of |
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| 34 | 34 | | 4selectmen of a town or in a municipality having a town council form of government, the town |
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| 35 | 35 | | 5council or the mayor with the approval of the city council in a city may establish a tax exemption |
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| 36 | 36 | | 6or abatement program for persons who have a legal relationship as a grandparent raising a |
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| 37 | 37 | | 7grandchild and are over the age of 55. In exchange for raising a grandchild, the city or town shall |
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| 38 | 38 | | 8reduce the real property tax obligation of such person on his tax bills and any reduction so |
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| 39 | 39 | | 9provided shall be in addition to any exemption or abatement to which any such person is |
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| 40 | 40 | | 10otherwise entitled. Provided such reduction of the real property tax bill shall not exceed $1,000 2 of 2 |
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| 41 | 41 | | 11per child in a given tax year. It shall be the responsibility of the city or town to maintain a record |
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| 42 | 42 | | 12for each taxpayer the total amount by which the real property tax has been reduced and to |
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| 43 | 43 | | 13provide a copy of such record to the assessor in order that the actual tax bill reflect the reduced |
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| 44 | 44 | | 14rate. A copy of such record shall also be provided to the taxpayer prior to the issuance of the |
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| 45 | 45 | | 15actual tax bill. Such cities and towns shall have the power to create local rules and procedures for |
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| 46 | 46 | | 16implementing this section in any way consistent with the intent of this section. |
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| 47 | 47 | | 17 A city or town, by vote of its legislative body, subject to its charter, may adjust the |
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| 48 | 48 | | 18exemption in this clause by allowing the maximum reduction of the real property tax bill to be |
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| 49 | 49 | | 19based on a verified established legal relationship to the child(ren) in a given tax year. |
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