PID’s Top Priority Bills

H.800, An Act assuring that polling places are accessible to elderly and physically challenged voters. This bill would strengthen voting rights by making polling places across Massachusetts be more accessible, and by providing towns and cities with funding to make these accessibility improvements.

S.504, An Act enforcing accessibility for voters with disabilities. This bill would ensure that voting locations are accessible to voters with physical disabilities by requiring the Massachusetts Secretary of State’s Office to inspect all such voting locations at regular intervals.

S.505, An Act establishing same day voter registration. Same-day voter registration is a massive boost to voting rights — lowering barriers to voting for renters, working people, and anyone with a busy schedule. With this bill — as well as House versions, H.863 and H.834 — Massachusetts would join 22 other states (including Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, and Connecticut) in allowing same-day registration.

H.799, An Act decoupling the municipal census from voter registration, and its companion bill in the Senate, S.503. In our current system, if voters don’t respond to their municipal census, they are marked as “inactive” voters, delaying or jeopardizing their ability to vote.  This problem affects 700,000 Massachusetts voters each year. This bill would solve the problem by separating voter registration from the municipal census — helping protect the right to vote.

S.531, An Act providing a local option for ranked choice voting in municipal elections. With this bill, towns and cities that choose to adopt ranked choice voting for municipal elections would be free to do so of their own accord, without having to seek approval from the state. This is a big boost for democracy — giving people more power to shape their local elections, and building a greater sense of trust and investment in our democratic processes.

The Home Rule Petitions providing for ranked choice voting in individual towns and cities. Several towns and cities have already voted to start using ranked choice voting, but they are waiting on the state legislature to approve the change. Please help us advocate for the Home Rule Petitions of the following towns, especially if you live there! (We also expect a few more towns and cities to submit Home Rule Petitions on ranked choice voting over the course of the session — so keep an eye out for more.)

Acton (H.869)

Easthampton (H.835)

Lexington (H.809)

S.525, An Act to limit political spending by foreign-influenced corporations, and its companion bill in the House, H.875. This bill would help reduce the influence of money in politics and mitigate the impact of foreign-influenced corporations on Massachusetts’ democracy.

S.524, An Act relative to voting rights restoration, and its companion bill in the House, H.873. Since 2000, people in Massachusetts lose their voting rights when incarcerated for a felony conviction. These bills would fix that — making sure no one loses their voting rights for a felony conviction or incarceration, and helping our state take a big step forward on voting rights. We also support the proposed constitutional amendments aiming to make this change — S.7 and H.63.

S.522, An Act relative to the board of registrars, and its House companion bill, H.853. Across our state, municipal boards of registrars play an important role in our elections. Currently, however, only registered Republicans or registered Democrats are permitted to serve on these boards–leaving out the majority of Massachusetts voters, who belong to no party. This bill would remove that requirement, allowing voters who do not belong to either major political party to serve on these boards. 

Further Priority Bills We’re Supporting 

H.857, An Act increasing voter participation in primary elections. When voters have greater voice at the stage of the primaries, elections are more meaningful and government is more representative and responsive. This bill would create a commission to study and explore ways to strengthen voters’ voice and participation in the primaries, including shifting to a different elections model like Top Two, moving the date of the primary elections earlier in the year, changing systems around party nominations, and more.

H.805, An Act clarifying the role of Governor’s Councillor on the ballot. This bill would reduce confusion for voters by providing clearer language about Governor’s Council candidates on the ballot. Currently, ballots refer to the officer only as “Councillor.” This bill would change the ballot line to “Governor’s Councillor,” a small change that could clear up a lot of confusion.

S.1471, An Act empowering municipalities and improving efficiency. Similarly to S.531, with this bill, towns and cities would be able to more easily implement changes on local issues, like local elections systems, without having to wait for separate approval from the state legislature.

S.6, Proposal for a legislative amendment to the Constitution establishing an independent redistricting commission. This bill would establish an independent redistricting commission through our state’s constitution — helping to secure fair districts for Massachusetts voters, now and into the future. Fair districts are crucial to fair elections, and help ensure all voters can meaningfully have their say.

S.8, Proposal for a legislative amendment to the Constitution relative to campaign finance reform. This bill is a critical step forward on campaign finance reform — curbing the outsize influence of money in politics, and restoring greater voice and power for voters. It would allow our state to regulate corporations’ political spending, and bring more limits and transparency to money in politics.