Massachusetts 2025-2026 Regular Session

Massachusetts Senate Bill S1008 Compare Versions

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

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1	1	1 of 1
2	2	SENATE DOCKET, NO. 1573 FILED ON: 1/16/2025
3	3	SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1008
4	4	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
5	5	_________________
6	6	PRESENTED BY:
7	7	Joan B. Lovely
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 the Massachusetts rental voucher program.
13	13	_______________
14	14	PETITION OF:
15	15	NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :Joan B. LovelySecond EssexJames K. Hawkins2nd Bristol2/8/2025James B. EldridgeMiddlesex and Worcester2/8/2025Jason M. LewisFifth Middlesex2/12/2025Patricia D. JehlenSecond Middlesex2/19/2025Bruce E. TarrFirst Essex and Middlesex2/26/2025Nick CollinsFirst Suffolk3/4/2025Vanna Howard17th Middlesex3/10/2025 1 of 5
16	16	SENATE DOCKET, NO. 1573 FILED ON: 1/16/2025
17	17	SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1008
18	18	By Ms. Lovely, a petition (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 1008) of Joan B. Lovely, James K.
19	19	Hawkins, James B. Eldridge, Jason M. Lewis and other members of the General Court for
20	20	legislation relative to the Massachusetts rental voucher program. Housing.
21	21	[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
22	22	SEE SENATE, NO. 888 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 the Massachusetts rental voucher program.
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 Chapter 121B of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2020 Official Edition, is hereby
32	32	2amended by adding the following section:-
33	33	3 Section 61. (a) The department shall, subject to appropriation, establish and administer
34	34	4through administering agencies, the Massachusetts Rental Voucher Program also known as
35	35	5MRVP, a program of rental assistance for eligible low-income, very low-income, and extremely
36	36	6low-income households through mobile and project-based vouchers for the purpose of obtaining
37	37	7decent, stable, and affordable housing and promoting economically mixed housing. The
38	38	8department shall issue the number of vouchers anticipated to completely utilize, but not exceed
39	39	9the appropriation for this program; provided further, that the department shall establish the 2 of 5
40	40	10amounts of the mobile and project-based vouchers so that the appropriation in this item shall not
41	41	11be exceeded by payments for rental assistance and administration.
42	42	12 (b) To be eligible to receive assistance under this section, a household shall have a net
43	43	13income that does not exceed 80 percent of the area median income, as determined by the U.S.
44	44	14Department of Housing and Urban Development. The department may award mobile vouchers to
45	45	15eligible households occupying MRVP project-based units that shall expire due to the non-
46	46	16renewal of project-based rental assistance contracts. Households shall meet eligibility
47	47	17requirements as required in this section and applicable regulations and guidance issued by the
48	48	18department. Not less than 75 percent of the vouchers shall be targeted to households whose
49	49	19income at initial occupancy does not exceed 30 percent of the area median income.
50	50	20 (c) A payment standard is the amount used by an administering agency to calculate the
51	51	21maximum amount of the MRVP subsidy. Except as provided under paragraph (d), the payment
52	52	22standard for each size of a dwelling unit in a market area shall not exceed 110 percent of the fair
53	53	23market rent, or Small Area Fair Market Rent as established annually by the U.S. Department of
54	54	24Housing and Urban Development, for the same size of dwelling unit in the same market area and
55	55	25shall be not less than 100 percent of that fair market rent, except that no administering agency
56	56	26shall be required as a result of a reduction in the fair market rent to reduce the payment standard
57	57	27applied to a household continuing to reside in a unit for which the household was receiving
58	58	28assistance under this section at the time the fair market rent was reduced. The department shall
59	59	29allow administering agencies to request exception payment standards within fair market rental
60	60	30areas subject to criteria and procedures established by the department. 3 of 5
61	61	31 (d) The department may require an administering agency to submit the payment standard
62	62	32of the administering agency to the department for approval, if the payment standard is less than
63	63	33100 percent of the fair market rent or exceeds 110 percent of the fair market rent, except that an
64	64	34administering agency may establish a payment standard of not more than 120 percent of the fair
65	65	35market rent where necessary as a reasonable accommodation for a person with a disability,
66	66	36without approval of the department. An administering agency may use a payment standard that is
67	67	37greater than 120 percent of the fair market rent as a reasonable accommodation for a person with
68	68	38a disability, but only with the approval of the department. In connection with the use of any
69	69	39increased payment standard established or approved pursuant to either of the preceding two
70	70	40sentences as a reasonable accommodation for a person with a disability, the department may not
71	71	41establish additional requirements regarding the amount of adjusted income paid by such person
72	72	42for rent.
73	73	43 (e) A household that receives tenant-based assistance under this section, with respect to
74	74	44any dwelling unit, shall not pay for rent more than 30 per cent of the monthly adjusted net
75	75	45income of the household; except that households receiving tenant-based assistance under this
76	76	46section may pay more than 30 per cent of the monthly adjusted net income of the household, at
77	77	47their option, in excess of the payment standard for the voucher, provided that this amount may
78	78	48not exceed 40 per cent of the monthly adjusted net income of the household in the first year of
79	79	49occupancy; provided further that the department shall adjust household rent for those paying
80	80	50separately for utilities.
81	81	51 (f) The rent for dwelling units for which a housing assistance payment contract is
82	82	52established under this subsection shall be reasonable in comparison with rents charged for
83	83	53comparable dwelling units in the private, unassisted local market. 4 of 5
84	84	54 (g) For each dwelling unit for which a housing assistance payment contract is established
85	85	55under this section, the administering agency shall inspect the unit before any assistance payment
86	86	56is made to determine whether the dwelling unit meets the minimum standards of fitness for
87	87	57human habitation as required by the State Sanitary Code. These requirements cannot be waived.
88	88	58Each administering agency providing assistance under this section shall, for each assisted
89	89	59dwelling unit, make inspection not less often than biennially during the term of the housing
90	90	60assistance payments contract for the unit to determine whether the unit is maintained in
91	91	61accordance with the requirements of this paragraph.
92	92	62 (h) Effective as of January 1, 2022, the monthly administrative fee for all vouchers
93	93	63administered under this section shall be not less than the administrative fee rates for the Housing
94	94	64Choice Voucher Program, as established annually by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
95	95	65Development$80.00 per voucher, per month.
96	96	66 (i) The department shall maintain and administer a single voucher management system
97	97	67and shall collect data on the utilization of rental vouchers in each fiscal year under this program.
98	98	68This data shall include, but not be limited to: the location and value of each voucher-assisted
99	99	69unit; the number and average value of mobile and project-based vouchers currently distributed in
100	100	70the Commonwealth, in each county, and in each municipality; the household size; age of the
101	101	71head of household and each member of the household; the race and ethnicity of each household;
102	102	72the income and source of income of each household. The department shall report to the House
103	103	73and Senate Committees on Ways and Means and Joint Committee on Housing annually on the
104	104	74utilization of rental vouchers in each fiscal year under this program. The department shall collect
105	105	75and report on the data collection as required under Chapter 334 of the Acts of 2006. 5 of 5
106	106	76 (j) The department shall promulgate regulations and guidance to implement this section.
107	107	77 (k) Any unspent funding appropriated for this program through budget line-item 7004-
108	108	789024 in any fiscal year shall not revert, but shall be made available for the purposes of the item
109	109	79in the next fiscal year.