ENABLING
LEGISLATION
MASSACHUSETTS
GENERAL LAWS, CHAPTER 40B, AS AMENDED
SECTION 9 - ESTABLISHMENT OF DISTRICT
The Executive Director of the Massachusetts Office of Business
Development, hereinafter in this section and sections ten to nineteen
inclusive, called the Executive Director, may establish a regional planning and
economic development district consisting of all the cities and towns in the
Southeastern Massachusetts Regional Planning District under this chapter, and
the Towns of Plymouth, Plympton, Carver, and Kingston, to be known as the
Southeastern Regional Planning and Economic Development District, provided a
determination is made by the United States Secretary of Commerce that said area
is eligible for designation as an economic development district in accordance
with the provisions of the Public Works and Economic Development Act of
1965.
SECTION 10 - MEMBERSHIP OF CITIES AND TOWNS IN DISTRICT: TERMINATION OF MEMBERSHIP
Upon the designation of the regional planning and economic
development district by the Executive Director, all cities and towns within the
boundaries of the district shall become members of the district. The Executive Director may from time to time
review the boundaries of the district so established and, if he deems it in the
best interest of the district, he may with approval of a majority of the
members of the regional development commission include additional cities and
towns, or he may exclude cities and towns from said district; provided,
however, that prior to such increase or decrease in the membership of the
district, the Executive Director shall consult with the mayor of a city, or the
city manager in a city having a Plan D or Plan E form of government, or the
selectmen of a town to be included or excluded from such district.
The city or town may, after it has been a member of a regional
planning and economic development district for a period of not less than five
consecutive calendar years, terminate its membership in the district by a
two-thirds vote of the city council or by vote of a town meeting or town in
favor of terminating such membership.
Said termination will become effective at the end of the calendar year
within which said termination is voted.
SECTION 11 - DISSOLUTION OF REGIONAL PLANNING DISTRICTS; TRANSFER
OF RESPONSIBILITY, RECORDS, EMPLOYEES TO SUCCESSOR DISTRICT:
DESIGNATION OF COMMISSION MEMBERS TO SERVE IN INTERIM PERIOD
If the district boundary of the regional planning and economic
development district established in accordance with Section Nine includes a
majority of cities and towns organized as a regional planning district pursuant
to this chapter, said regional planning district shall be dissolved upon the
organization of a regional planning and economic development district.
When the Southeastern Massachusetts Regional Planning District
is dissolved and a successor district is established in accordance with the
provisions of Section Nine, the jurisdiction and responsibility of said
Southeastern Massachusetts Regional Planning District shall be transferred to
the successor district and commission and all records, reports, studies,
documents, plans and property including all assets and liabilities of said
district or commission shall be transferred forthwith to the custody, control,
and responsibility of the regional planning and economic development
commission. Upon the effective date of
any such dissolution, all of the permanent or temporary employees of such
district or commission shall be transferred to the regional planning and
economic development district without impairment of retirement rights and
without reduction in compensation or salary grade; provided, however, that
nothing in this section shall be construed to confer upon any employee any
tenure of office of employment or any rights not held prior to such
transfer. The adopted plans and policies
of said district so dissolved pertaining to regional planning considerations
shall be deemed to be and shall continue to have full force and effect until
modified by the commission of the successor district. No such dissolution of a previously
established district and no establishment of a district in accordance with
Section Nine shall become effective except in compliance with the following
procedure; upon receipt of notification from the executive director that he
intends to establish a district in accordance with Section Nine, the city
manager in a city having a city manager and the mayor in any other city, the
board of selectmen, and the planning board of each city and town therein shall
not later than twenty days from the date of notification appoint or designate
the respective commission members to serve in the interim period until March
thirty-first next, provided, however, that in the case of a planning board
which had previously appointed a member of a regional planning commission
established in accordance with this chapter, each such planning board shall
appoint the same member to the commission established in accordance with
Section Nine for said interim period if said member is willing to accept said
appointment, but otherwise appoint in accordance with this section. The commission members so designated shall
not later than thirty-five days from the date of said notification, elect
officers in accordance with Section Fifteen.
Upon receipt of notification from the commission so established, that
there has been compliance with the foregoing procedures, the executive director
shall forthwith notify the state secretary who shall issue a certificate of
organization to said district which shall be conclusive evidence of the
establishment and organization of said district, and, the executive director
shall forthwith dissolve the previously established regional planning district.
SECTION 12 - COMMISSION; MEMBERSHIP; TERMS OF OFFICE
In the regional planning and economic development district
established pursuant to Section Nine, there shall be a regional planning and
economic development commission which shall consist of the mayor of each city,
or in a city that has a Plan D or Plan E form of government the city manager,
or their designee, a member appointed by the board of selectmen of each town
included within said district who need not be a member of the board of
selectmen, a member appointed by the planning board of each such city or town
who need not be a member of the planning board.
Each member shall be appointed for a term of one year commencing June
first of the year appointed to May thirty-first of the succeeding year, and the
appointment or reappointment of each member shall be certified annually to the
commission by the appointing authority in the month of May. Notwithstanding any of the foregoing
provisions, the commission may increase its membership by not more than six in
order to provide representation to low-income and minority groups.
SECTION 13. ADVISORY
COMMITTEE; MEMBERSHIP; TERMS OF OFFICE
Twenty-one persons residing within the district shall be
appointed to an advisory committee for the purpose of providing advice and
guidance to said commission and said persons shall be representative of
business, labor, professional, and civic organizations and other economic
interests within the district. Nine
members shall be appointed by the Executive Director with approval of the Governor,
and twelve members shall be appointed by the commission. Of the initial appointees of the executive
director, three shall be appointed for a term of one year, three for a term of
two years, and three for a term of three years.
Of the initial appointees of said commission, four shall be appointed
for a term of one year, four for a term of two years, and four for a term of
three years. Upon the expiration of a
term of a member of the advisory committee or upon written resignation, his
successor shall be appointed in like manner for a term of three years, or for
the balance of the unexpired term. A
member may be removed and a vacancy declared by majority vote of the advisory
committee at a regular meeting thereof, consequent upon three consecutive absences
from regular advisory committee meetings, and his successor shall be appointed
in like manner as the original appointment for the balance of the unexpired
term. The commission shall, in its
by-laws, provide appropriate procedures for the referral of problems, issues,
and policies for deliberation by the advisory committee.
SECTION 14 - POWERS AND DUTIES OF DISTRICT; REPORTS
The regional planning and
economic development district established under the provisions of Section 9
shall have the following powers and duties:
a)
to adopt a corporate seal;
b)
to sue and be sued, but only to the same
extent and upon the same conditions that
a town may sue or be sued;
c)
to rent, lease or otherwise to acquire
quarters for the housing of the commission and
the staff thereof;
d)
to receive and disburse funds from any
public or private sources for any district purposes.
In addition to the foregoing,
the district, acting through the commission or any committees thereof, shall
have the following additional powers and duties:
e)
to conduct studies of the resources, problems,
and needs of the district, and, on the basis of such studies, to prepare and,
from time to time, revise both comprehensive regional plans and comprehensive
economic development programs for the district and for such part or parts
thereof as the commission may deem advisable, including recommendations for the
physical, social, and economic improvement of the district. Such plans and recommendations shall be
adopted and may be changed or supplemented from time to time by a majority vote
of the commission and shall be a public record; and to conduct feasibility and
implementation studies for public facilities and programs and for public and
private development projects which are consistent with and which would tend to
implement the objectives and recommendations of the commission;
f)
to conduct research, surveys, analyses and
compile such data, maps, charts and tables and other pertinent or necessary
information for the purpose of formulating regional and subregional goals,
objectives, policies, plans, and programs and for project proposals related to
the comprehensive physical, social, and economic development and redevelopment
of the resources and facilities of the district and its subdistricts;
g)
to cooperate with and to assist each city
and town in the district to coordinate its planning and economic development
activities with the district so as to obtain maximum benefits for the district
and for each city and town from such activities;
h)
to cooperate with and to assist agencies of
the Commonwealth and the United States Government in fulfilling the purposes
and objectives of the district;
i)
to recommend appropriate action by public
and private organizations and agencies to implement the recommendations
prepared by the commission;
j)
to provide technical advice, assistance,
and guidance to cities and towns, to other
public agencies and to development organizations and to private
businesses in the district in implementing the objectives and recommendations
of the commission, in undertaking planning and economic development programs,
and in making application for federal financial assistance;
k)
to compile and maintain a system for the
collection and dissemination of information and statistics relevant to the
district, and to make such information available to public agencies and to
private organizations and individuals engaged in activities which tend to
implement the objectives and recommendations of the commission
l)
to approve or disapprove by majority vote
such plans for the development and redevelopment of the district or parts
thereof as may be laid before it. The
approval or disapproval of any such plans or any such recommendation of the
commission shall be advisory only; provided, however, that the commission shall
have the power to exercise such approval or disapproval as a regional or
metropolitan planning or development agency acting pursuant to the requirements
of the publicly aided program applicable to the district or to any part
thereof;
m)
to advertise and otherwise to promote the
implementation of the plans and
recommendations of the commission and the economic and industrial
development of the district;
n)
to sponsor conferences, institutes,
seminars, and training programs on behalf of the district and the cities and towns therein for
the purpose of developing the capabilities of commission members, commission
staff, other public officials and employees and development organizations, to
assist in preparing and implementing the plans and recommendations of the
commission;
o)
to undertake comprehensive and special
planning and economic development programs and projects for any part or parts
of the district, and, for such purpose to assist inter-municipal cooperation
and to delineate, establish, and administer subregional district organizations
as administrative subdivisions of the district and commission.
Except as otherwise prohibited
by law said district and commission is further authorized to act as and to
assume the duties, obligations and responsibilities of an economic development
district designated pursuant to the Public Works and Economic Development Act
of 1965.
The commission shall report
annually on or before Feb. 1 to the city councils and town meetings of the
cities and towns in the district as to the plans and recommendations of the
commission and the status thereof. The
commission shall make and publish such reports as the commission shall deem
appropriate for the purpose of accomplishing, promoting and explaining the
objectives and recommendations of the district.
Said district may not authorize
debt in anticipation of revenue to be received by the district unless the
regional planning and economic development commission of said district so votes
in accordance with Section 8.
SECTION 15 - OFFICERS; MEETINGS OF COMMISSION; RULES OF PROCEDURE;
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE; STANDING COMMITTEES; TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEES;
COMPENSATION
The Commission shall elect annually at its meeting held in the
month of June by and from its members a chairman, a vice-chairman, a secretary
and a treasurer, each of whom shall hold office until his successor is elected
and qualified. The commission shall from
time to time fill any vacancy in such an office for the unexpired term
thereof.
The immediate past chairman shall be an officer ex-officio.
The commission may also elect an assistant treasurer who may
exercise all the powers and duties of the treasurer in the absence of the
treasurer.
The commission shall meet during the months of February, April,
June and October and at such other times as the commission shall determine.
The commission shall establish rules of procedure for its
activities and the activities of all committees, and shall keep a complete and
accurate record of the substance of its meetings, transactions, resolutions,
findings, and determinations, all of which shall be a public record.
The executive director, treasurer, and assistant treasurer shall
give the commission a bond, with a surety company authorized to transact
business in the Commonwealth as surety for the faithful performance of their
duties in such sum and upon such conditions as the commission may require.
There may be an executive committee, elected annually,
consisting of (1) the officers of the commission, who shall serve as the
officers of the executive committee, (2) four members of the commission who
shall be elected by a majority vote of the commission and who shall be
selectmen or designees of selectmen, (3) four members of the commission who
shall be elected by a majority vote of the commission and who shall be representatives
of the planning boards, and (4) the mayor or city manager or his designee of
each city serving as a member of the commission; provided, however, that each
redevelopment area within the district as designated by the Secretary of
Commerce of the United States pursuant to the Public Works and Economic
Development Act of 1965, shall be entitled to have at least one member on the
executive committee among the members who are either mayors or their designees
or the selectmen or their appointees.
The commission may appoint from among its members such other
special and standing committees as it shall deem necessary and all such
committees shall exercise such powers, discharge such responsibilities, and
perform such duties as the commission may delegate thereto by vote or by its
by-laws. The commission, at its
discretion, may appoint additional persons to any such committee from outside
the membership of the commission; provided, that in no case shall the number of
commission members on such standing and special committees, and if the
application of the two-thirds percentage results in a fractional number, in
order to facilitate such appointment the number of such additional persons on
said committees may be the next highest digit.
The members of the commission shall serve without compensation
but the officers shall receive payment for necessary expenses, including travel
incurred in the performance of their duties.
The commission shall establish such technical advisory
committees as may be needed to assist the executive director in planning and
developing the programs and projects of the commission. The commission, at its discretion, may
appoint additional persons to any committee from outside the membership of the
commission. The chairman, executive
director, or head of any state, county or municipal agency, and any public
authority operating within the district if permitted by its trust indentures to
do so, shall delegate one or more well-qualified representatives from the
agency or authority to serve on any of the said technical advisory committees
when so requested by the commission.
SECTION 16 - EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF COMMISSION; APPOINTMENT AND
COMPENSATION OF COMMISSION EMPLOYEES
The commission shall employ, and may remove, an executive director,
who shall be qualified by education, training, and experience in economic
development, regional and program planning, and community relations. The executive director, on behalf of and with
the approval of the commission, shall employ and appoint all other employees of
the commission, including temporary or part-time personnel. The executive director and other employees of
the commission shall not be subject to Chapter Thirty-One nor to Section Nine A
of Chapter Thirty. The commission shall
determine and establish the compensation and other terms, conditions, and
benefits of employment for all employees of the commission.
SECTION 17 - CONTRACTS TO RECEIVE OR TO PROVIDE SERVICES,
FACILITIES, STAFF, OR MONEY PAYMENTS; EXPENDITURES, AND OBLIGATIONS
The commission is authorized to enter into contracts and
agreements with any department, agency or subdivision of federal or state
government and any individual, corporation, association or public authority to
provide or to receive services, facilities, staff assistance or money payments
in connection with the work of the commission, and the commission may
contribute or receive services, facilities, staff assistance or money payments
as consideration in such contracts or agreements. The commission shall approve all contracts,
which shall be signed by the chairman and treasurer.
The commission may make expenditures and incur obligations for
services and other expenses, subject to the following conditions and
limitations: The commission may expend
such amounts in addition to its annual assessment upon the cities and towns in
the district as the commission may receive under any federal or state law, or
by gift, grant, contract or agreement from any source, including grants,
bequests, gifts or contributions made by any individual, corporation,
association, public authority, or department, agency or subdivision of the
federal or state government.
SECTION 8 - DISTRICT PLANNING COMMISSIONS; BORROWING IN
ANTICIPATION OF REVENUE; EXECUTION, EFFECT, AND MATURITY OF REVENUE
ANTICIPATION NOTES
The district may authorize debt by a majority vote of the
commission in anticipation of revenue to an amount not in excess of that to be
received during the current fiscal year from member cities and towns. Notes issued under authority of this section
shall be in the name of and upon the full faith and credit of the district, and
said notes shall be signed by the treasurer of the district, and the chairman
of the district planning commission shall countersign and approve them in the
presence of the clerk of the district who shall certify to the fact on the face
thereof. Such notes shall be payable,
and shall be paid not later than one year from their dates, and shall not be
renewed or paid by the issue of new notes, except as provided in Section
Seventeen of Chapter Forty-Four.
SECTION 18 - ESTIMATES OF DISTRICT EXPENSES; APPORTIONMENT AND
ASSESSMENT AGAINST CITIES AND TOWNS; FISCAL YEAR; PAYMENT OF EXPENSES; RESERVE
FUNDS; AUDIT OF ACCOUNTS
The commission so established shall not later than fifty days
from the issuance of a certificate or organization by the state secretary
prepare an estimate of the amount of money required to pay the costs and
expenses of the district for the current fiscal year and, in the case of the
district being dissolved for the purpose or organizing a district in accordance
with Section Nine, the costs and expenses of said predecessor district incurred
during the current fiscal year for which funds are not otherwise available,
and, after first subtracting from such estimate of costs the amount of
unexpended monies in the custody of the commission which were previously
received by the predecessor district from member cities and towns for the
expenses of the current fiscal year, the commission shall apportion, assess and
certify for payment the amount so determined in accordance with this section.
Each city and town treasurer shall not later than thirty days
from the receipt of said certification pay the amount so apportioned and
certified from any monies available in the treasury of each such city or town,
and the board of assessors of each such city or town shall include said amount
in the assessment for the annual tax levy if such tax levy has not been
assessed, but otherwise shall include said amount in the next annual tax levy
in addition to any amount to be raised for the purposes of the commission for
the next fiscal year in accordance with this section.
The commission shall operate on a fiscal year beginning with
July 1 and ending with the following June 30.
The commission shall, annually in the month of October, estimate and
assess the cities and towns in the district the required amount of money
necessary to pay the cost and expenses of the district for the following fiscal
year. The amount so determined for the
district shall not exceed a sum equivalent to thirty cents per capita of the
population of the district or fifty thousand dollars, whichever is the greatest
amount; and said amount shall be apportioned and assessed upon each city and
town in the district in the proportion which the population of each such city
or town bears to the total population of the district, provided, however, that
the population of the district and of each city and town shall be the
population as determined by the most recent state or national decennial census
exclusive of the population in any county, state, or federal institutions
otherwise included in such census. The
amounts so apportioned for each city and town shall, prior to December 31 of
each year, be certified by the district treasurer to the treasurers of each
city and town within the district. Each
city and town treasurer shall pay the amount so apportioned by the district
treasurer not later than July 10 of the fiscal year for which the apportionment
is made, and shall make such payment from any monies available in the treasury
of each such city or town. The district
treasurer shall submit a duplicate copy of the aforementioned certificate to
the board of assessors of each city and town, and each such board of assessors
shall include said amounts in the assessment for the annual tax levy according
to the procedures specified in Section Twenty-One of Chapter Fifty-Nine;
provided, however, that if the annual tax levy is determined by any such board
of assessors prior to receiving a copy of said certification, the board of
assessors shall include as money to be raised in the tax levy an amount equal
to twenty cents per capita of the population of the city or town as determined
aforesaid, and, if said amount is less than the amount actually certified by
the district treasurer, the difference shall be included as money to be raised
in the next annual tax levy.
Payments for the expenses of the district shall be made by the
treasurer or assistant treasurer only upon a warrant for such payment approved
by a majority of the commission or, if so delegated, by a majority of the
executive committee or by a majority of such other committee as the commission
may delegate by its by-laws to exercise such approval.
Said regional planning and economic development districts may
accumulate reserve funds for, but not limited to, the purposes of funding the
purchase and replacement of capital equipment and participating in state and
federal programs, provided, that such accumulated reserve funds may not exceed
the estimated proportion of the district commission's costs and expenses to be
paid by the member cities and towns during the next fiscal year.
The director of accounts in the Department of Corporations and
Taxation shall annually cause an audit to be made of the accounts of the
commission. A report thereon shall be
made to the chairman of the commission and a copy thereof shall be sent in a
city having a city manager to said city manager and in all other cities to the
mayor, the board of selectmen of each town and to each planning board in the
district.
SECTION 19 - EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION BETWEEN DISTRICT AND
AGENCIES OF COMMONWEALTH
There shall be a mutual exchange between the commission and all
agencies of the Commonwealth and of each political subdivision thereof within
the district, of data, records, and information within their knowledge and
control pertaining to the district, or to parts thereof which may be required
for the preparation of programs designed to achieve the purposes of this
chapter.