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By Mr. Verga of Gloucester, petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 3781) of Anthony J. Verga and others relative to abandoned vessels. Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture. |
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
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PETITION OF:
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By Mr. Verga of Gloucester, petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 3781) of Anthony J. Verga and others relative to abandoned vessels. Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture. |
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
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PETITION OF:
Bruce E. Tarr
Mary E. Grant
Douglas W. Petersen
John W. Scibak
Robert L. Hedlund
Patricia A. Haddad
Antonio F. D. Cabral
Robert M. Koczera
Jeffrey Davis Perry
Stephen M. Brewer
Garrett J. Bradley
Michael W. Morrissey
F. Jay Barrows
John A. Lepper
Christine E. Canavan
Bruce J. Ayers
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In the Year Two Thousand and Seven.
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Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
SECTION 1. Section l7 of chapter 255 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2004 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the words “civil action”, in line 4, the following words:- in the district court or
SECTION 2. Section l7 of said chapter 255, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding the following paragraph:- Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, no such civil action shall be necessary for a lienholder to sell at public auction or dispose of a vessel on which a lien exists pursuant to sections 14 or 14A and on which title is presumed to have been abandoned. Title shall be presumed to have been abandoned if:-
(a) any owner of record of the vessel was sent certified mail at the last known address including, but not limited to notice of the amount of the lien and any proposed disposition or sale of the vessel; and
(b) legal notice of the lien, including but not limited to: description of the vessel, description of where the vessel is located, and proposed disposition or sale was published in a newspaper of general circulation in the city or town of any owner of record’s last known address for three consecutive days; and
(c) at least 90 days passed from the last such newspaper publication date and no response or reply was received indicating an ability to satisfy the debt to the lienholder.
Upon filing with the marine title division of the department of environmental police, or any successor agency, a notarized affidavit stating no reply, satisfying the debt, to the certified mail or the publication, and with legible copies or originals of foregoing documents, the lienholder may dispose of the vessel. If the lienholder of a vessel presumed to have been abandoned elects to hold a public auction of the vessel, upon receipt of the aforementioned notarized affidavit and legible copies or originals of the foregoing documents, the marine title division or any successor agency thereto, shall issue an abandonment of title document to the lienholder, if requested, and, subsequently new title documents to the purchaser of the vessel at public auction.
Any proceeds of sale in excess of any liens thereon shall be placed in a fund held by the department of conservation and recreation in trust for the former owner of record for 2 years, at which time the funds shall become available to said department of conservation and recreation to be used solely for the purpose of removing from the public waterways vessels on which title may be presumed to have been abandoned.