History

On August 2, 2006, Massachusetts General Law Chapter 43D was signed into law. This program offers communities a tool for targeted economic development.

What does Chapter 43D do?

  • Provides a transparent and efficient process for municipal permitting
  • Guarantees local permitting decisions on priority development sites within 180 days
  • Increases visibility of your community and target development site(s)

What are the benefits of opting-in?

  • Grants up to $60,000 for such things as professional staffing assistance, local government reorganization, and consulting services ** IMPORTANT NOTE: Chapter 43D grants were not included in the FY11 state budget and are not available at this time
  • Priority consideration for state infrastructure grants and other financing through quasi-public organizations
  • Online marketing of your site and promotion of your pro-business regulatory climate
  • Improved municipal planning and permitting efficiencies
  • Collection of special fees for priority development site permit applications

What are the minimum criteria for priority development sites?

  • Must be zoned for commercial or industrial development
  • Must be eligible for the development or redevelopment of a building of at least 50,000 square feet of gross floor area (may include existing structures and contiguous buildings)
  • Sites must be approved by the local governing authority
  • Must be approved by the state Interagency Permitting Board

What are the obligations of opting into Chapter 43D?

  • Community must identify a qualifying parcel as a priority development site, and obtain permission of its owner (if private) for participation in the program
  • Within 120 days of adopting Chapter 43D, the community must
    • appoint a single municipal point of contact for streamlined permitting;
    • amend local rules, regulations, bylaws, etc. to comply with 180 day permit timeline;
    • determine and make available the requirements for each permit;
    • establish a procedure for identifying necessary permits for a project;
    • establish a procedure for determining completeness of the required submissions.
  • After the 120 phase-in period is complete, the town must render permitting decisions on priority development sites within 180 days

What protections does this program offer for communities?

  • The 180 day guarantee is suspended if the governing body determines:
    • an application is incomplete
    • an application contains false or misleading information
    • that substantial changes to the project affect the information on the permit applications since the original submission

How do I obtain more information on this program?

Revised as of 8/23/10