Massachusetts government 101: Lawmaking, the legislature, and you
In the early days of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the Massachusetts General Court (as the state legislature was and is called) functioned as a judicial court as well as a law-making assembly. Nowadays, it is purely the legislative branch of the Massachusetts government, alongside the judicial and executive branches. In the United States, any powers not explicitly assigned to the federal government are the purview of the legislature of each state. These include passing a state budget and setting taxes; amending the state constitution; preserving the state’s natural and agricultural resources; setting state standards of education; redrawing the boundaries of legislative districts every 10 years; and determining voting rules.
The Massachusetts General Court is made up of two branches: an upper house called the Massachusetts Senate and a lower house called the Massachusetts House of Representatives.
● Both senators and representatives serve two-year terms with no term limits, and all seats in the legislature are up for election in even-numbered years.
● Currently, legislators’ base salaries are about $70,000 per year, with additional stipends for expenses and committee work. The highest-paid state legislator in 2021, Sen. Cynthia Friedman of Arlington, earned $220,544 that year (she served on eight committees). House Speaker Ronald Mariano of Quincy was the next-highest earner that year, taking home $179,276.
● Legislators work on passing bills into law year-round, in sessions that each last two years, starting in January of odd-numbered years. Formal business is conducted from January through November of the first year, and from January through July of the second year, with informal sittings in between.
The Massachusetts Senate
The state Senate has 40 members, with each senator representing approximately 164,000 people. The Senate elects one senator to be its president for each session. The president is the primary leader who sets the agenda and calendar of legislation, presides over the sessions, and ensures that senators abide by procedural rules. The second-highest-ranking Senate leader is the president pro tempore, who is also elected by the Senate and presides if the president is absent.
The Senate president appoints committee chairs and members, as well as:
● The Senate majority leader: The principal leader of the majority party, this person serves as the lead speaker during floor debates and works with the Senate president to develop policy strategy and direct the floor sessions.
● Assistant majority leaders: These senators work with the majority leader to develop and implement the agenda for the majority party.
Majority whip and assistant majority whip: These senators try to enforce party discipline on votes.
The minority party elects its own leaders and whips in a party caucus.
The Massachusetts House
The House of Representatives is composed of 160 members, each of whom represents approximately 41,000 residents. Key members include:
● The Speaker of the House, the leader of this branch of government. The speaker is elected at the start of each session by the majority party caucus and is confirmed by the full House. The speaker controls the flow of legislation, presides over legislative sessions, and acts as the spokesperson for the chamber.
● The House majority leader, the lead spokesperson for the majority party during floor debates. Elected by the majority party caucus as well, the majority leader schedules the daily legislative calendar, directs the majority party’s strategy, and lines up members for votes.
● The minority leader, developer of the minority party’s positions. Elected by the minority party caucus, the minority leader directs the party’s strategy and caucus activities and negotiates with majority party leaders.
● Whips: Both majority and minority leaders are also assisted by whips, who function similarly to whips in the Senate.
Committees
State legislators not only represent their constituents in their individual capacities on the legislative floor but also in committees that are responsible for studying, amending, and voting on proposed legislation before it reaches the floor of each chamber for a full vote.
Each chamber has its own permanent standing committees as well as temporary select/special committees that are formed to deal with specific issues. Joint committees include members of both chambers. See a list of all the committees currently active in the Massachusetts General Court
How a bill becomes a law
Committees represent the most important components of the state legislative process. The process begins when a bill is filed in either the House or the Senate. It is assigned to the appropriate joint committee for hearings and deliberation, and the joint committee issues a report recommending whether the bill “ought to pass” (with or without amendments), “ought not to pass,” or whether it be given a “study order” – an action that, in effect, usually kills the bill by not reporting it out of the joint committee. Sometimes the joint committee will recommend a small number of changes in the form of amendments; sometimes the committee will redraft the bill entirely or combine several bills that are on the same topic.
If the bill receives a favorable “ought to pass” recommendation, it goes through what is known as the “three readings” process. The first reading sends the bill to either the Committee on Steering and Policy, the Rules Committee, or the Ways and Means Committee of the chamber the bill was sent to by the joint committee. The second reading occurs when the bill is released from those committees and goes to the floor of the chamber for general debate and proposed amendments. After a vote of approval for the bill’s second reading, it then goes to the Committee on Bills in the third reading to be reviewed, and then back to the chamber floor for more debate and a vote.
If the chamber votes favorably on the bill after the third reading, the bill then goes to the opposite chamber to repeat the three-reading process. Thus, a bill that started out in the House will go to the Senate, and vice versa. If there are any differences between the House and Senate versions after each chamber passes the bill, a conference committee – three senators and three representatives – is appointed by leadership to reconcile those differences, so that both chambers will be approving the exact same version with their final vote. The version reported out of the conference committee cannot be amended further. Following enactment, the bill is sent to the governor, who may do any of the following:
● sign the bill,
● veto the bill,
● do nothing for 10 days, allowing either the bill to become law if the legislature is in session at the time or to expire if it is not (an action known as a “pocket veto”),
● or return the bill to the legislature with recommendations for changes.
In turn, the state legislature can vote to overturn the governor’s veto and make the bill into law.
What can you do to shape state laws?
1. Vote!
Cast your ballot – and encourage others around you to vote as well! This is the most basic and fundamental form of democratic civic engagement. Look up who your House and Senate candidates are, and choose the ones who best represent your views.
2. Contact your state senator and representative
Advocate for the issues you care about! You will be most effective in contacting your own senator and representative. They want to know what their constituents think.
Find your state legislators and other government representatives and contact them using online tools or text messages, or write to them personally (see this guide for tips on how to state your points effectively).
3. Testify before joint committees
You can submit written testimony on bills you support or oppose to the joint committee considering the bill. You can also testify in person or virtually at the public hearings the joint committees hold on bills. If you are interested in testifying on a specific bill, ask the staff in the bill sponsor’s office to let you know when a hearing is scheduled.
4. Voter referendums and initiatives
Massachusetts voters can use petitions to place questions on the biennial state election ballot. The four types are:
● Initiative Petition for a Law: This proposes a new law or asks to reject or amend an existing law.
● Initiative Petition for a Constitutional Amendment: This proposes a new amendment to the state constitution.
● Referendum Petition: This proposes a repeal of a law that was enacted by the Massachusetts General Court within the last 30 days.
● Public Policy Petition: This is meant to advise a state senator or representative about questions of non-binding public policy by revealing the will of the people.
Here are official guides and information packets from the Massachusetts government on how to create these ballot questions, which are often expensive to execute successfully.
5. Run for office yourself!
Read the official guide on how to run for office in Massachusetts and a comprehensive compilation of information from the Massachusetts Women’s Political Caucus.
These groups train people to run for office: