Senator Stephen Buoniconti of West Springfield and Hampden County and Senator Michael Knapik of Holyoke and Hampden and Hampshire County have introduced the amendment set forth below that would have a significant impact on families in need of emergency shelter and on DHCD’s administration of the program.
If you wish to discuss these proposals with the Senators, you can reach them at:
Senator Buoniconti, 413-733-9991, Stephen.Buoniconti@state.ma.us
Senator Knapik: (413) 562-6454, Michael.Knapik@state.ma.us
EHS 645
EMERGENCY SHELTER
Mssrs. Buoniconti and Knapik moved that the bill be amended by inserting at the end thereof the following section:-
“SECTION XX Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary the Undersecretary of the Department of Housing and Community Development shall make a report detailing recommended regulations to prohibit the practice of housing homeless residents in hotels or motels throughout the commonwealth. These recommended guidelines shall include temporary housing alternatives which provide cost savings to the commonwealth as well as a timeline to eliminate such practice within 1 year. All residents currently being sheltered in hotel or motel accommodations shall be required to have access to food refrigeration as well as kitchen facilities including an oven on the premises; and provided further that no municipality shall house a percentage of homeless individuals in hotels or motels which exceeds twice that communities’ percentage of total state population. The report shall be submitted to the clerk of the Senate and clerk of the House of Representatives, along with the House and Senate Committees on Ways and Means no later than 30 days following the passage of this act.
Section 2: Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary the Department of Housing and Community Development shall be directed to promulgate regulations which require any individual or family seeking an emergency assistance shelter placement to produce documentation which verifies the commonwealth of Massachusetts as their place of legal residence.
Section 3: Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary a pregnant woman shall not be deemed automatically eligible for placement in a hotel or motel until such time as that woman gives birth. Nothing in this section shall be interpreted to limit the eligibility of a pregnant woman to be placed in a homeless shelter during pregnancy.
Section 4: Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary the Department of Housing and Community Development shall be directed to make an investigation and study of all available and unused shelter space throughout the commonwealth. If shelter space is discovered that meets safety and suitability criteria to be determined by the Department of Housing and Community Development and is currently unused, the Department of Housing and Community Development shall be required to issue a request for proposal until such time as sufficient shelter capacity exists so as to eliminate the need for emergency family placements in hotels and motels; Provided further that any individual or family seeking emergency shelter and deemed eligible shall be presented by the Department of Housing and Community Development with not more than 1 shelter option. If said individual or family declines the option presented to them they shall be deemed ineligible to receive emergency shelter for a period of 1 year; Provided further that the Department of Housing and Community Development shall be required to notify the local department of health, police department, and school department of any municipality in which an emergency family placement is made. Any family placed in a motel shall receive assessment and housing search services within 5 business days; Provided further that the Department of Housing and Community Development shall have the authority, if no shelter space is available and as an alternative to a hotel or motel placement, to place a family seeking emergency assistance in a shelter which exists in the commonwealth that is beyond 20 miles from said family’s last known place of legal residence; Provided further that the Department of Housing and Community Development shall be prohibited from placing a family with children under 3 years of age in any hotel or motel which does not make available a crib for such a child which meets applicable safety regulations to be determined by the Department of Children and Families; Provided further that prior to placing any child under the age of 3 years in a hotel or motel, the Department of Housing and Community Development must notify the Department of Children and Families. Within 24 hours of any such hotel or motel placement the Department of Children and Families shall make an inspection of the room and crib provided to ensure the safety of the child. If the hotel or motel in which any such child under the age of 3 years is placed fails to provide such child with a safe and adequate crib as determined by the Department of Children and Families, said hotel may be subject to a fine not to exceed $10,000 per violation.
Section 5: Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, the Department of Housing and Community Development shall be required to reimburse on a quarterly basis any community in which an emergency hotel or motel placement is made for all costs associated with busing any school age children from said hotel or motel placement out of district to attend school.
Section 6: Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, the Department of Housing and Community Development shall be granted all statutory authority necessary to promulgate regulations consistent with this act.”
