An Act relative to the housing emergency

This bill addresses the housing emergency in Massachusetts by requiring municipalities to allow specific types of multi-family housing, known as "middle housing," to be built without needing special approval. It defines these new housing types, including duplexes, triplexes, quadplexes, townhouses, and cottage clusters, and mandates that cities with populations over 2,500 permit accessory dwelling units, while larger cities must allow duplexes or middle housing as of right. The law also prohibits local zoning rules from banning multi-family housing or imposing stricter standards on government-assisted housing than those applied to regular housing. Additionally, the bill allows cities to regulate the design and placement of these homes to protect infrastructure, provided such rules do not unreasonably discourage development or cause significant delays.