Belchertown, Mass., Code of Bylaws ch 235 § 235-6

A. Individual adjustment of maximum rent. The Board shall consider an adjustment of rent for an individual mobile home park accommodation upon receipt of a petition for adjustment filed by the landlord or tenant of such mobile home park accommodation or upon its own initiative. Such petition shall be made on a form approved by the Board. The Board shall notify the landlord, if the petition was filed by the tenant, or the tenant, if the petition was filed by the landlord, of the receipt of such petition and of the right of either party to request a hearing, in writing, within 15 calendar days of receipt of such notice, or the Board may schedule a hearing on its own initiative. If a hearing is timely requested by either party or if the action is undertaken on the initiative of the Board, notice of the time and place of the hearing shall be furnished to the landlord and tenant, and the hearing shall be conducted before the Board. The Board may consolidate petitions and actions taken under its own initiative relating to mobile home park accommodations in the same mobile home park, and all such petitions and actions may be considered in a single hearing. B. General adjustment of maximum rent by regulation. On its own initiative, the Board may make a general adjustment, by percentage or otherwise, of the rental levels for mobile home park accommodations, subject to such conditions, if any, as the Board shall determine. Prior to making such adjustment, a public hearing shall be held before the Board. Notice of the time, place and purpose of such hearing shall be published at least once in a newspaper having a general circulation in the town and posted in the Town Hall, both not less than seven days prior to such hearing. Likewise, the owner or a tenant may petition the Board for a similar-type general adjustment, in which event the foregoing procedures shall be utilized by the Board. C. Limitation of petition for individual adjustment. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the Board may, without holding a hearing, refuse to adjust the maximum rent for an individual mobile home park accommodation and may dismiss any petition for adjustment if a decision has been made with regard to the maximum rent for such mobile home park accommodation within 12 months or if the Board finds that the petition for adjustment is filed for purposes of harassment or for other purpose not intended herein. D. Hearings conducted pursuant to Subsections A and B above shall be conducted as adjudicatory hearings in accordance with the provisions of MGL c. 30A, §§ 10 , 11 and 12 . Rules and procedure for the conduct of said hearings shall be those rules and regulations outlined in 801 CMR 1.00 et seq. for the conduct of adjudicatory hearings before state administrative agencies, which the Board hereby adopts and shall implement as its own rules and regulations for the conduct of adjudicatory proceedings. As soon after the filing of a petition as is practical, the Board shall meet and determine whether to proceed on such petition pursuant to the formal or informal rules as outlined in 801 CMR 1.00 et seq. or under other procedure and shall indicate its determination as to which rules and procedures shall be followed in its notice of agency action to affected parties and in the public notice of said hearing. E. All decisions made by the Board under this section shall be rendered in writing within 30 days from the date of final hearing or as soon thereafter as is practical or may be accomplished by the concurrence of the parties. F. The Belchertown Mobile Home Park Rent Control Board shall levy a filing fee upon any and all parties that make application to request a rent adjustment for a mobile home accommodation or a mobile home rental unit. The filing fee for any individual rent adjustment requested pursuant to Subsection A of this section shall be $25. The filing fee for a general rent adjustment pursuant to Subsection B of this section shall be $10 per unit for which a general adjustment is requested. The above filing fee shall be paid by check or money order made payable to the Town of Belchertown and presented upon the filing of the petition.