497 1 e71527_497.htm SUPPLEMENT

BLACKROCK MULTI-STATE MUNICIPAL SERIES TRUST
BlackRock New York Municipal Opportunities Fund
(the “Fund”)
Investor A1 and Investor C1 Shares

Supplement dated October 14, 2016
to the Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information, each dated October 28, 2015

Effective as of October 14, 2016, BlackRock Advisors, LLC (“BlackRock”) has agreed to add caps on total expenses to reduce the net expenses paid by shareholders of the Fund. To achieve these expense caps, BlackRock has agreed to waive and/or reimburse fees and/or expenses if the Fund’s annual fund operating expenses, excluding certain expenses described in the prospectus, exceed a certain limit for the Fund’s Investor A1 and Investor C1 Shares. Accordingly, the Fund’s Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information are amended as follows:

The section of the Fund’s Prospectus entitled “Fund Overview — Key Facts About BlackRock New York Municipal Opportunities Fund — Fees and Expenses of the Fund” is deleted in its entirety and replaced with the following:

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Fund.

Shareholder Fees
(fees paid directly from your investment)
   
 Investor A1
Shares
    
 Investor C1
Shares
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)
               
None1
     
None     
Maximum Deferred Sales Charge (Load) (as percentage of offering price or redemption proceeds, whichever is lower)
               
None2
     
None3
 

Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a
percentage of the value of your investment)
   
 Investor A1
Shares
    
 Investor C1
Shares
Management Fee
               
   0.55%
     
   0.55%
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) Fees
               
0.10%
     
0.60%
Other Expenses
               
0.23%
     
0.22%
Interest Expense
               
0.04%   
     
0.04%   
Miscellaneous Other Expenses
               
0.19%   
     
0.18%   
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses
               
0.88%
     
1.37%
Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements4
               
(0.24)%
     
(0.23)%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements4
               
0.64%
     
1.14%
 
1    Investor A1 Shares are subject to a maximum sales charge on purchases of 4.00%. The sales charge does not apply to dividend and capital gain reinvestments by existing shareholders and new purchases for certain employer-sponsored retirement plans, which are currently the only investors who may invest in Investor A1 Shares.
2    A contingent deferred sales charge (“CDSC”) of 1.00% is assessed on certain redemptions of Investor A1 Shares made within 18 months after purchase where no initial sales charge was paid at time of purchase as part of an investment of $1,000,000 or more. The CDSC does not apply to redemptions by certain employer-sponsored retirement plans or to redemptions of shares acquired through reinvestment of dividends and capital gains by existing shareholders.
3    A CDSC of 1.00% is assessed on certain redemptions of Investor C1 Shares made within one year after purchase. The CDSC does not apply to redemptions by certain employer-sponsored retirement plans or to redemptions of shares acquired through reinvestment of dividends and capital gains by existing shareholders.
4    As described in the “Management of the Fund” section of the Fund’s prospectus beginning on page 28, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive and/or reimburse fees and/or expenses in order to limit Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements (excluding Dividend Expense, Interest Expense, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses and certain other Fund expenses) as a percentage of average daily net assets to 0.60% for Investor A1 Shares and 1.10% for Investor C1 Shares through October 31, 2017. The Fund may have to repay some of these waivers and/or reimbursements to BlackRock in the two years following such waivers and/or reimbursements. This contractual agreement may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested trustees of BlackRock Multi-State Municipal Series Trust or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund.


 
 

Example:

This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
   
 1 Year
    
 3 Years
    
 5 Years
    
 10 Years
Investor A1 Shares
                    $ 65                $ 257                $ 464                $ 1,062     
Investor C1 Shares
                    $ 116                $ 411                $ 728                $ 1,626     
 

Portfolio Turnover:

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 22% of the average value of its portfolio.

The following is added immediately after the fifth paragraph in the section of the Prospectus entitled “Management of the Fund — BlackRock”:

BlackRock has contractually agreed to cap net expenses of the Fund (excluding (i) interest, taxes, dividends tied to short sales, brokerage commissions, and other expenditures which are capitalized in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles; (ii) expenses incurred directly or indirectly by the Fund as a result of investments in other investment companies and pooled investment vehicles; (iii) other expenses attributable to, and incurred as a result of, the Fund’s investments; and (iv) other extraordinary expenses (including litigation expenses) not incurred in the ordinary course of the Fund’s business, if any), of each share class set out below at the levels shown below and in the Fund’s fees and expenses table in the Fund Overview section of this prospectus. Items (i), (ii), (iii) and (iv) in the preceding sentence are referred to in this prospectus as “Interest Expense, Dividend Expense, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses and certain other Fund expenses.” To achieve these expense caps, BlackRock has agreed to waive and/or reimburse fees or expenses if these operating expenses exceed a certain limit.

With respect to the Fund, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive and/or reimburse fees or expenses in order to limit Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses to the amounts noted in the table below.
   
 Contractual Caps on Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses* (excluding Interest Expense, Dividend Expense, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses and certain other Fund expenses)1
Investor A1 Shares
               
0.60%
Investor C1 Shares
               
1.10%
 
*
   As a percentage of average daily net assets.
1    The contractual caps are in effect through October 31, 2017. The contractual agreement may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested trustees of BlackRock Multi-State Municipal Series Trust or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund.

2

 
 

The fourth paragraph in the section of the Statement of Additional Information entitled “Management and Advisory Arrangements” is deleted in its entirety and replaced with the following:

Effective October 13, 2016, the Manager has contractually agreed to waive and/or reimburse fees or expenses of the Fund in order to limit Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements (excluding Interest Expense, Dividend Expense, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses and certain other Fund expenses) as a percentage of average daily net assets to 0.75% for Investor A Shares, 1.50% for Investor C Shares, 0.50% for Institutional Shares, 0.60% for Investor A1 Shares, and 1.10% for Investor C1 Shares through October 31, 2017. This contractual agreement may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested trustees of the Trust or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund.

From June 15, 2016 through October 13, 2016, the Manager had contractually agreed to waive and/or reimburse fees or expenses of the Fund in order to limit Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements (excluding Interest Expense, Dividend Expense, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses and certain other Fund expenses) as a percentage of average daily net assets to 0.82% for Investor A Shares, 1.57% for Investor C Shares, and 0.57% for Institutional Shares.

Prior to June 15, 2016, the Manager had contractually agreed to waive and/or reimburse fees or expenses of the Fund in order to limit Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements (excluding Interest Expense, Dividend Expense, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses and certain other Fund expenses) as a percentage of average daily net assets to 0.89% for Investor A Shares, 1.64% for Investor C Shares, and 0.65% for Institutional Shares.

Shareholders should retain this Supplement for future reference.

3
 
 

PRSAI-NYMPRI-1016SUP