Framingham, MA

In the City of Framingham, depositing garbage, decayed meat, fish, fruit, vegetables or any other decomposing substance anywhere but a Board of Health-approved location is banned under…

On roads the Framingham City Council has designated scenic, no tree over eight inches in trunk diameter may be cut for a driveway unless the curb cut cannot otherwise be safely…

The City of Framingham's Department of Public Works may restrict outdoor water use, including irrigation systems, during drought or emergency conditions under City Water Regulations §§…

Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 87 establishes statewide rules governing the trimming, pruning, and care of public shade trees, requiring a tree warden's authorization for cutting…

In the City of Framingham, a Family Child Care Home caring for up to six children is treated as an accessory use to a dwelling, while a Large Family Child-Care Home caring for more…

In the City of Framingham, a home occupation or home office run out of a single-family dwelling may display only one identification sign, and that sign is capped at two square feet and…

In the City of Framingham, a home occupation inside a single-family dwelling is allowed by right under City Code § 435-9 but capped at 25% of the dwelling's floor area or 400 square…

Framingham's home occupation ordinance limits customer traffic sharply: City Code § 435-9D allows no more than three customers, clients, pupils, or patients on-site at any one time…

Massachusetts has no cottage food statute and no state cottage food licence. A home kitchen selling food is treated as a food establishment, and the permit comes from the local board…

Massachusetts has no microenterprise home kitchen permit and no home restaurant category. The one route to serving cooked meals out of a private kitchen is the bed-and-breakfast branch…

Framingham bars keeping any animal or bird that frequently causes noise for continued periods during nighttime hours under City Code § 332-4C(9), covering barking dogs and similarly…

Framingham bars public address systems, radios, stereos, and live instruments from being clearly audible across a residential property line between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. on…

Framingham caps noise from stationary sources by land use and time of day under Section 332-5. Residential receivers get 55 dB(A) by day, 50 dB(A) in the evening and 45 dB(A) at night…

In the City of Framingham, Chapter 332 bars nuisance noise, including loud music, radios, automobile sound systems, shouting and public address systems, from 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m…

Framingham bans lawn mowers, leaf blowers and other homeowner's light residential outdoor equipment as nuisance noise between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. Sunday through Thursday, and…

Framingham limits construction and demolition to 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. under Section 332-6 of the City Code. Nonemergency construction noise near residential property is barred…

Section 332-7 of the Framingham City Code bars operating any motor vehicle or motorcycle on a public right-of-way at a sound level above set dB(A) limits, measured 50 feet from the…

Massachusetts regulates aircraft noise statewide through 740 CMR 24.00, the Logan Airport Noise Abatement rule enforced by the Massachusetts Port Authority. It bars new, noisier…

In the City of Framingham, the Director of Public Works may tow any vehicle that blocks plowing or snow and ice removal on a city way, including onto a public garage, under City Code §…

Framingham City Code § 357-1 caps residential-district property at one unregistered, ungaraged car or truck at a time, unless the Mayor authorizes more. Anyone who exceeds that limit…

Framingham bars storing an unregistered, unsightly car or truck in a residential front yard under City Code § 357-1, and separately treats vehicles or equipment parked on soil, grass…

In the City of Framingham, only curb markings authorized by the Traffic Commission and approved in writing by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation count as official under…

In the City of Framingham, a vehicle may not park in a designated service zone for more than 15 minutes under City Code § 550-19, except while actively loading or unloading, which is…

The City of Framingham bars parking a registered vehicle on a public street for more than two hours between 1:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m. under City Code § 550-23, with no exception for…

The City of Framingham bars any commercial vehicle or trailer of one ton or more from parking or standing on a public street for more than one hour between 12:01 a.m. and 8:00 a.m…

In the City of Framingham, parking in front of a private driveway or against the flow of traffic on a one-way street is barred under City Code § 550-15. Blocking a driveway carries a…

Massachusetts adopts statewide EV-readiness requirements under the State Building Code (780 CMR) and Stretch Energy Code, mandating that new construction include EV-ready parking…

Massachusetts caps what a tow company can charge you after a nonconsensual tow. Under 220 CMR 272.03(1) the maximum charge for towing a passenger automobile up to five miles is $132.00…

Framingham's ADU ordinance is owner-occupancy only: City Code § 435-12C(2) and (4)(a) require the property owner to actually live in one of the two units as their primary residence…

Framingham allows accessory dwelling units in single-family homes only by special permit from the Zoning Board of Appeals under City Code § 435-12C. An ADU is capped at 900 square feet…

In the City of Framingham, a shed or other limited accessory structure can sit inside the side setback under Zoning Ordinance § 435-27E(7), but only up to 120 square feet of gross…

In the City of Framingham, retaining walls built along a road, way, or within a subdivision right-of-way cannot exceed six feet above finished grade under City Code § 530-58(E). Walls…

In the City of Framingham, a fence can rise no higher than six feet above natural grade inside a required setback under Zoning Ordinance § 435-27E(2)(a). Where a front setback applies…

Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 49 establishes a statewide spite fence statute treating fences over six feet erected maliciously to annoy a neighbor as a private nuisance subject to…

In the City of Framingham, a veterinary services use has to keep noisy activity at least 100 feet from any residential lot line under Zoning Ordinance § 435-27E(10), and that activity…

City Code § 206-3 bars dogs from running at large anywhere in Framingham and requires any dog in a street or public place to be on a chain or leash no longer than 10 feet. The Animal…

Framingham has no breed-specific dog rules: it never singles out a breed. Instead, City Code § 206-2 lets anyone file a written complaint with the Police Chief that a dog is a nuisance…

Framingham does not cap how many dogs or cats a household may keep outright, but City Code § 206-10 requires anyone owning more than three dogs to obtain a kennel license from the City…

Framingham's code does not cap or license backyard chickens or livestock directly. Instead, City Code § 255-2 defines keeping and raising poultry, swine, cattle, and other domesticated…

Massachusetts authorizes its chief apiary inspector to require registration of every bee colony kept in the commonwealth, with a fee capped at five dollars per registrant regardless of…

Massachusetts prohibits private possession of most exotic and wild animals statewide. MassWildlife regulates permits, and the list of prohibited species is uniform across the…

Massachusetts prohibits the sale, possession, and use of all consumer fireworks by private individuals, including sparklers, with no municipal opt-out permitted.

Massachusetts restricts open burning to January 15 through May 1 annually with a permit issued by the local fire chief under uniform state regulations.

Massachusetts requires a state fire marshal license and local fire chief permit to store flammable gases including propane above specified threshold quantities.

Massachusetts bans any open-air fire statewide unless the local forest warden or fire chief issues a permit good for no more than two days. Violators face a fine up to $500 plus the…

Massachusetts law requires short-term rental operators to maintain at least $1,000,000 in liability insurance covering each rental, unless intermediary provides equal coverage.

Massachusetts imposes a statewide 5.7% room occupancy excise on short-term rentals, plus optional local and community impact fees collected uniformly through DOR.

The Massachusetts State Building Code mandates barrier requirements for residential pools statewide. Fencing must be at least 4 feet high with self-closing, self-latching gates.

In the City of Framingham, Massachusetts, neighborhood advisory groups can get permit and license fees waived for their annual block party under City Code § 110-12C. The Framingham…

In the City of Framingham, a business that wants to place tables, chairs or a cafe structure on a public sidewalk needs a sidewalk business use license from the Board of License…

In the City of Framingham, restaurants may set up permanent outdoor seating on sidewalks, parking lots, on-street parking spaces, or yard areas under City Code § 435-12B, the…

In the City of Framingham, land in FEMA Zone A or AE on the Middlesex County Flood Insurance Rate Map sits in an overlay Floodplain District. Any development there needs a Building…

Framingham requires new and substantially improved buildings in the Floodplain District to be elevated to or above the base flood level, with residential lowest floors (including the…

In the City of Framingham, Zoning § 435-33 requires development to meet NPDES MS4 and MassDEP stormwater standards, keep runoff off wetlands and sensitive areas, and avoid increasing…

In the City of Framingham, projects disturbing an acre or more must follow Land Disturbance and Stormwater Management (LDSM) erosion controls under Zoning § 435-33, hay bales are…

Massachusetts regulates all tidelands and coastal development statewide under Chapter 91 (MGL c.91) and 310 CMR 9.00, requiring state licenses for structures and fill in tidelands…

In the City of Framingham, the agricultural preservation development (APD) zoning provisions let an active farm owner sell up to 30% of the parcel for a residential cluster development…

City Code § 255-3 declares a right to farm in Framingham, protecting commercial agricultural operations from nuisance complaints over the noise, odors, dust, and fumes that come with…

In the City of Framingham, dumping litter, debris or refuse on public or private property without permission, or fouling a stream, brook, lake or pond, violates Chapter 419 and carries…

The City of Framingham's Board of Health regulates every dumpster or trash container in the city: it must sit at least 25 feet from any public way without written permission, avoid…

Framingham confines adult bookstores, video stores, paraphernalia stores, adult theaters and adult live entertainment to an Adult Uses Overlay District and requires a Zoning Board of…

Framingham requires a City Council license before anyone deals in junk, old metals, or secondhand articles under City Code § 299-1. Licensed shopkeepers must log every purchase with…

No one may sell tobacco products, including e-cigarettes and e-liquids, in Framingham without an annual tobacco product sales permit from the Board of Health under § 507-15A. The city…

Operating a massage or bodywork establishment in the City of Framingham requires a current permit from the Division of Public Health, on top of the individual practice permit each…

No one may run a tattoo or body piercing shop in the City of Framingham without a Board of Health establishment permit, and no artist may work without an individual Board of Health…

In the City of Framingham, a residential project can earn a density bonus by including affordable housing units (AHU) beyond the base inclusionary requirement. Under City Code §…

Framingham requires every project in the Central Business (CB) District that needs site plan review or a special permit to meet design standards under City Code § 435-14, meant to…

In the City of Framingham, food truck operators skip the City's transient vendor license but must instead hold a valid license from the Commonwealth's Division of Standards and from…

In the City of Framingham, a food truck licensed by the state Division of Standards and the Board of Health is exempt from the City's peddler license under Code § 409-2D(3). An ice…

In the City of Framingham, billboards are flatly prohibited and so is any flashing, rotating, animated, moving or changing sign face, a category the sign ordinance extends to digital…

In the City of Framingham, a window sign carrying a commercial message cannot be displayed at all in the city's residential (R) or general residence (G) zoning districts, and…

In the City of Framingham, most businesses get only one wall sign per street frontage, but buildings in the M, M-1 and Technology Park zoning districts along Interstate 90 may add one…

Framingham's sign ordinance defines a political sign as one pertaining to a candidate, ballot question or political issue, and § 373-5D exempts political signs from the City's sign…

In the City of Framingham, thin-film single-use plastic checkout bags have been banned at every retail and grocery store since July 5, 2021, under Chapter 419, Article IV, with the…

Framingham bans smoking, ingesting, or otherwise using marijuana, THC, or cannabinoid products across a long list of public and quasi-public spaces under City Code § 318-1, from…

Framingham bans smoking within 15 feet of any public entranceway and in smoking bars under § 507-4C, and separately bars using or selling tobacco, marijuana or other combustible…

In the City of Framingham, a pedestrian may not cross a street outside a marked crosswalk whenever an officer is directing traffic, a traffic signal is present, or a marked crosswalk…

Framingham bans drinking any alcoholic beverage on public ways, in parks and playgrounds, and in any place the public can access, under City Code § 198-4. Police can seize alcohol used…

Framingham requires every licensed lodging house to store its waste in watertight, rodent-proof receptacles with tight-fitting covers under City Code § 312-11. The rule targets shared…

Every food establishment in the City of Framingham must have a certified food protection manager serving as the person in charge, someone who has passed a test in an accredited…

Framingham's lodging house code requires every licensed rooming house to keep egress doors, including any installed panic hardware, in safe working order and free of obstruction at all…

Framingham adopted the Massachusetts Stretch Energy Code as Chapter 220 of its City Code, requiring residential and commercial buildings to meet 780 CMR Appendix 115.AA rather than the…

In the City of Framingham, no one but a City officer may dig up any part of a public way, or obstruct one to erect, repair, alter or remove a building, without a permit from the…

In the City of Framingham, no one may drive a horse onto a sidewalk or let a vehicle stand on or obstruct a sidewalk or crosswalk, except while loading, unloading, or crossing it as…

Framingham's noise ordinance treats a car stereo's rhythmic bass as proof of a violation on its own, under City Code § 332-2's "clearly audible" definition, so a police officer need…

Framingham names building HVAC systems as a regulated stationary noise source under Section 332-5. HVAC noise measured at a mixed residential-commercial property line, such as a hotel…

In the City of Framingham, property owners and managers who control off-street parking with handicapped-designated (HP) spaces must keep those spaces, access aisles, sidewalks, and…

In the City of Framingham, Chapter 336 of the City Code defines a property as blighted or a nuisance when hazardous or blighted conditions on private land or buildings substantially…

Framingham City Code § 336-2 treats overgrown vegetation and dumped trash on private land, improved or not, as a nuisance if it harbors rats and vermin, conceals stagnant water, or…

In the City of Framingham, no one may sell, solicit, or display goods on the public ways, or go door to door for commercial selling, without a license from the Board of License…

In Framingham's Corporate Mixed-Use (CMU) zoning district, the standard lot coverage limit set under City Code § 435-27B can rise from 70% to 80% under § 435-15D(2)(e) if a project's…

In the City of Framingham, a nonresidential building within 50 feet of a Single-Family Residential or General Residence district is capped at 30 feet in height under Zoning Ordinance §…

In the City of Framingham, a nonresidential building whose side lot line touches a Single-Family Residential or General Residence district must keep a 30-foot side setback under Zoning…

In the City of Framingham, no owner or lessor may start a new tenancy in a rental unit without a rental unit inspection certificate from the Board of Health under § 496-2. Owners…

For nonpayment of rent, Massachusetts requires a 14-day notice to quit under M.G.L. c. 186 § 11 (leases) or § 12 (tenancies at will). After the notice expires, the landlord must bring…

Massachusetts recognizes an implied warranty of habitability and gives tenants strong remedies. Under M.G.L. c. 111 § 127L, after certified code violations and proper notice, a tenant…

MGL Chapter 239 sets uniform statewide summary process eviction procedures for residential tenancies, establishing notice requirements, court process, and tenant defenses applicable in…

Massachusetts has no general statute requiring advance notice before a landlord enters. M.G.L. c. 186 § 15B(1)(a) instead limits when a lease may permit entry, to inspect, make…

Massachusetts strictly limits late fees. Under M.G.L. c. 186 § 15B(1)(c), no lease or rental agreement may impose any interest or penalty for late rent until the rent is at least 30…

To end a tenancy at will (month-to-month), Massachusetts requires written notice equal to one full rental period or 30 days, whichever is longer, under M.G.L. c. 186 § 12. Fixed-term…

Massachusetts prohibits rent control statewide. Voters abolished it through a 1994 ballot referendum codified as Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 40P, the Massachusetts Rent Control Prohibition…

Massachusetts has one of the nation's strictest security deposit laws. A landlord may collect no more than one month's rent as a security deposit, must hold it in a separate…

Massachusetts requires 20 years of continuous adverse possession to claim title to land. Under M.G.L. c. 260 § 21, an action to recover land must be brought within 20 years after the…

The Framingham Board of Health inspects every rental unit for compliance with the State Sanitary Code's Minimum Standards of Fitness for Human Habitation under § 496-4A. A compliant…

Framingham bans selling any flavored tobacco product citywide except inside an adult-only retail tobacco store, under § 507-18A of the Board of Health's tobacco regulation. The same…

Massachusetts requires purchasers of tobacco and vape products to be at least 21 years of age under MGL Chapter 270 Section 6, predating the 2019 federal Tobacco 21 law.

In the City of Framingham, subdivision developers must plant a street tree every 20 to 30 feet along new roads, with at least two street trees per created lot, under City Code §…

Massachusetts Scenic Roads Act protects trees and stone walls along designated scenic roads, requiring public hearing before any removal or alteration.

In the City of Framingham, marijuana retailers may operate only inside the Marijuana Retail Overlay Zoning District, and the Zoning Board of Appeals cannot grant a variance to locate a…

The City of Framingham's Board of Health will not issue a marijuana operating permit to any establishment sited within 500 feet of a public or private school serving preschool through…

Massachusetts preempts local bans on personal cannabis cultivation under MGL c.94G §7, allowing adults 21+ to grow up to six plants per person and twelve per household statewide.

In the City of Framingham, the Zoning Ordinance holds outdoor lighting at off-street parking facilities to zero lumens at every lot line. Under City Code § 435-24D(2), the Planning…

In the City of Framingham, every outdoor luminaire tied to an off-street parking facility must be fully shielded before the Planning Board will sign off on a site plan. City Code §…

The City of Framingham designates specific street segments as official bike lanes by ordinance under City Code § 550-11.1, including parts of Edgell Road, Central Street and Danforth…

Massachusetts treats a golf cart and a low-speed vehicle as different machines with different rights. A true golf cart may be driven on a public way only under one narrow carve-out in…

Framingham's Historical Commission keeps a Cultural Resources Inventory of historically or architecturally significant buildings at least 80 years old, under City Code § 284-9. Listing…

Massachusetts has no statewide omnibus drone statute, so recreational flying follows federal FAA rules. But across the roughly 450,000 acres the Department of Conservation and…

Massachusetts sets a statewide minimum wage of $15.00 per hour under MGL Chapter 151, and generally preempts cities from adopting higher local minimum wages.

Massachusetts provides paid family and medical leave through the PFML program under MGL Chapter 175M, plus paid sick time under the Earned Sick Time Law for most employees.

Massachusetts requires a License to Carry under MGL Chapter 140 Section 131 to carry concealed handguns, with applications processed by local police chiefs subject to suitability…

Massachusetts requires a valid License to Carry under MGL Chapter 140 Section 131 to transport loaded handguns in a vehicle, with strict storage rules applying to long guns and…

Beyond frost depth and snow load, the Massachusetts design criteria table sets weathering, termite risk, ice barrier, flood and air freezing index values that apply to every home built…

Massachusetts sets one frost line depth for the whole state: 48 inches. Footings must bear below that depth anywhere in the Commonwealth, and cities and towns do not set their own…

Massachusetts publishes a ground snow load for every one of its 351 cities and towns in a single state table, ranging from 25 psf on the Cape and Islands to 60 psf in the hill towns.

Massachusetts lists a minimum flat roof snow load for every city and town, and requires designers to use whichever is larger: that listed floor or the load calculated from the local…

The Expanded Gaming Act divides Massachusetts into three casino license regions and caps category 1 licenses at one per region. A resort casino can open only in a city or town that…

Massachusetts law bans commercial gambling but carves out G.L. c. 271 § 7A for nonprofit raffles and bazaars: veterans', religious, fraternal, educational, and civic groups that have…

Massachusetts bans gaming for money only in a public conveyance or public place, or in a private place where the player is trespassing. G.L. c. 271, § 2 does not reach cards, dice, or…

Massachusetts legalized sports wagering under G.L. c. 23N, with retail betting live January 31, 2023 and mobile apps following March 10, 2023. The Massachusetts Gaming Commission…

Massachusetts has no comprehensive HOA act. Condominium associations get a powerful statutory lien under M.G.L. c. 183A § 6 that carries a six-month super-priority over a first…

M.G.L. c. 183A, § 10(c) requires a Massachusetts condominium to keep a defined set of records up to date within the Commonwealth and to make them available for reasonable inspection by…

Massachusetts overrides some HOA and condo restrictions by statute. M.G.L. c. 184 § 23C voids deed covenants and condo-document provisions that forbid or unreasonably restrict solar…

Massachusetts gives owners an affirmative right to install electric vehicle supply equipment in their own unit or in a parking area they hold exclusive use of, and M.G.L. c. 183A, §…

Massachusetts gives a condominium's organization of unit owners express statutory power to levy fines, and attaches almost no conditions to it. M.G.L. c. 183A, § 10(b)(5) authorizes…

Massachusetts is not a UCIOA state, and its condominium lien rules sit in a home-grown statute, G.L. c. 183A, § 6. The lien attaches automatically when an assessment falls due and is…

Massachusetts runs the opposite way from states that cap association leasing bans. M.G.L. c. 64G, § 15 provides that nothing in the short-term rental chapter confers a right to lease…

The Massachusetts General Laws contain no sobriety checkpoint statute. A full-text search returns nothing for roadblock, roadblocks or sobriety checkpoint, and the single hit for…

Massachusetts has no statute granting a right to record police. It has G.L. c. 272, section 99, one of the strictest wiretap laws in the country, and the operative word in it is…

Massachusetts has no general stop-and-identify law reaching people on foot. The duty at G.L. c. 90, section 25 attaches only to a person operating or in charge of a motor vehicle, and…

Massachusetts has no clause saying lawful cannabis possession is not grounds for a search, unlike Michigan or Maryland. What it has instead is G.L. c. 276, section 1, which narrows…

M.G.L. c. 184, § 23C makes void any provision in an instrument relative to the ownership or use of real property that purports to forbid or unreasonably restrict the installation or…

M.G.L. Chapter 40A Section 3 protects solar installations from unreasonable local zoning restrictions. State law mandates expedited permitting in many municipalities.

Massachusetts bars any vehicle from mounting or displaying a flashing, rotating or oscillating light in any direction except under G.L. c. 90, section 7E, and section 7E hands out red…

Massachusetts has no dash camera statute, but G.L. c. 90, section 13B expressly permits a device to be mounted on or affixed to a vehicle windshield, dashboard or centre console so…

Lane splitting is illegal in Massachusetts. G.L. c. 89, § 4A tells the operator of a motorcycle that he shall not pass any other motor vehicle within the same lane, and the ban carries…

Massachusetts bans plate covers by naming the device rather than by regulating tint or reflectivity. G.L. c. 90, § 6 says number plates shall be kept clean with the numbers legible and…

Nothing in the Massachusetts General Laws prohibits a radar detector in a private car. A full-text search of the General Laws returns no hit at all for radar detector, speed measuring…

Massachusetts writes its studded tire rule as a ban on the warm half of the year rather than as a permission for winter. G.L. c. 90, § 16 makes it unlawful to operate a motor vehicle…

Massachusetts lets you put aftermarket film on the front side windows, the rear side windows and the rear window only if it transmits at least 35 per cent of visible light and reflects…