194th Massachusetts Legislative Session
(2025–2026)
ReconstructionInstitute supports and advances state policy priorities that reflect structural accountability, equity, and the dismantling of systemic oppression. Grounded in our core pillars — centering those at the margins, making policy accessible, and working collectively for a just, safe, and sustainable Massachusetts — the Institute tracks, advocates for, and educates about key legislative efforts this session.
The current legislative session runs through December 31, 2026 and encompasses a wide range of bills addressing equity, rights, public accountability, and community well-being.
making policy accessible
ReconstructionInstitute believes that policies grounded in the lived experiences and needs of marginalized and vulnerable communities are essential to achieving meaningful, systemic change in Massachusetts.
The following bills are designed to reduce persistent disparities and move the Commonwealth toward a more equitable state that works for everyone.
Bill No.
Title & Description
H.1416, S.901
An Act to Establish Health Equity: Address issues that drive equitable health outcomes, like improving access to quality care, ensuring strategic investment in underserved communities, and building a representative healthcare workforce. It will foster public and private partnership and strengthen accountability in government to forward health justice.
H.419, S.214
An Act to Alleviate Medical Debt: Ensures that people who already carry medical debt are protected from future financial harm and prevent people from accumulating medical debt by making hospital financial assistance policies more uniform and accessible while also restoring Health Safety Net coverage.
H.2580, S.1681
Safe Communities Act: Ends the voluntary involvement of our public safety officials in civil immigration matters by prohibiting questioning by court and police officials about immigration status, protecting basic rights and access to justice in courts, and prohibits 287(g) collaboration agreements that make local law enforcement a tool of ICE.
H.2483, S.2546
I AM Bill: Ensures access to free menstrual products, without stigma, to all menstruating individuals in all public schools, homeless shelters, prisons, and county jails.
H.1353, S.1818
An Act to Lift Kids Out of Deep Poverty: Raises cash assistance grants up to the Deep Poverty level and then provide annual increases to keep up with inflation.
H.656, S.340
An Act Relative to Healthy Youth: Requires school districts that offer sex education to provide medically accurate, age-appropriate information. Focuses curriculum on building healthy relationships and helps youth understand consent and boundaries. Ensures that material is inclusive of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning (LGBTQ) youth. Allows parents and guardians to opt their children out from attending offered sexual education classes.
H.2608, S.1651
An Act Relative to Human Rights and Improved Outcomes for Incarcerated People: This bill would establish universal access to programming, education, and vocational training opportunities, meaningful and productive out of cell time, and ensure that people’s human rights are protected while they are behind prison walls.
holding power to account
ReconstructionInstitute believes Massachusetts residents deserve a legislature that serves all communities and uses government as a force for the public good.
The following bills strengthen the Commonwealth’s public health infrastructure, advance transparency and accountability in government, and ensure institutions and corporations are held responsible for their impact on residents.
Bill No.
Title & Description
H.1117, S.784
An Act Promoting and Enhancing the Sustainability of Birth Centers and the Midwifery Workforce: Creates a state fund to invest in midwifery education, ensure sustainable insurance reimbursement rates for midwifery practices and birth centers, and create a community birth registry to promote quality improvement for midwifery care.
H.1096, S.711
An Act Relative to Rate Equity for Community Health Centers: Requires MassHealth to reimburse Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) according to the federal prospective payment system (PPS) methodology or comparable alternative payment methodology (APM), as is the case today, and ensures that commercial payers pay no less than MassHealth.
H.1107, S.819
An Act Prohibiting Discrimination Against 340b Drug Discount Participants: Prohibits Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) from applying discriminatory contracting terms to 340B covered entities and their contract pharmacies simply because they participate in 340B. Also prohibits pharmaceutical manufacturers from refusing to ship 340B medications to the pharmacies covered entities contract with to fill their patients’ medications.
H.545, S.862
An Act Relative to MassHealth Reimbursement for Schools: Redirect school Medicaid funds back to schools for health services and administration. Ensure schools benefit fully from submitting claims, maximizing federal funds, and expanding access to student health services.
S.2099
An Act to Provide Sunlight to State Government: This bill contains the following elements to improve public access to key information: (1) Requires that legislative testimony be made public; (2) Makes committee votes public; (3) Requires 2-week notice before a legislative hearing takes place; and (4) applies the public records law to the governor's office.
H.834, S.505
An Act Establishing Same Day Voter Registration: This bill would allow for same-day registration, which would permit eligible individuals to register to vote or update their registration on Election Day and during the early voting period. Same-day registration will help ensure no otherwise eligible voters are turned away at the polls on Election Day. This reform is already successfully implemented in 23 other states, in addition to Washington D.C.
H.86, S.197
An Act to Protect Safety and Privacy by Stopping the Sale of Location Data: Users would need to provide affirmative opt-in consent for collecting location information and have a clear means to opt out of location data processing for targeted advertising, and companies would be restricted from retaining location information longer than necessary for permissible purposes. Law enforcement would also need to obtain a warrant to access user location data from data brokers, closing a current loophole.
H.3594, S.2328
An Act Regarding Free Expression: Protects intellectual freedom in Massachusetts libraries by preventing book bans, ensuring fair material selection, and safeguarding librarians from political pressure.
H.2636, S.1725
An Act Creating an Independent Correctional Oversight Office to Facilitate the Recommendations of the Special Legislative Commission on Structural Racism in Correctional Facilities of the Commonwealth: This bill will establish an independent oversight office within the Office of the Inspector General to oversee and investigate these issues and empower it to enforce the reforms it deems necessary.
H.1634, S.1163
An Act Relative to Sexual Assaults by Adults in Positions of Authority or Trust: Adds a new Section 13B¾ to GL Chapter 265, defining penalties for sexual assault by mandated reporters or other people in positions of trust, authority or supervision over a child.
H.3110, S.2033
An Act Combatting Off-Shore Tax Avoidance: This bill would make large global mega-corporations pay the state’s existing corporate tax rate on a higher share of the excess profits they conceal offshore.
S.525
An Act to Limit Political Spending by Foreign-Influenced Corporations: No foreign-influenced corporation shall make an independent expenditure for the purpose of promoting or opposing a question submitted to voters. Any corporation who makes an independent expenditure must certify they are not foreign-influenced.
