MA H787

Bill

An Order relative to the establishment of mail-in voting in the Commonwealth

Introduced
03/29/2021

In Committee
03/29/2021

Crossed Over

Passed

Dead
12/31/2022

Introduced Session

192nd General Court

Bill Summary

Relative to the authority of the General Court or any other officer of the Commonwealth to enact laws which allow citizens to vote from anywhere but their specified polling place. Election Laws.

AI Summary

This bill aims to prevent the establishment of mail-in voting in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as it argues that such a measure would be unconstitutional. The bill cites the state constitution, which allows the General Court (the state legislature) to provide for absentee voting only under specific circumstances, such as when a voter is absent from their city or town or unable to vote in person due to a physical disability. The bill contends that the Secretary of State's actions during the 2020 election to distribute mail-in ballot requests more broadly exceeded the limits set by the state constitution. The bill resolves that any legislation proposing to allow for mail-in voting in Massachusetts would be prohibited by the state constitution and would require a constitutional amendment process to be enacted.

Committee Categories

Government Affairs

Sponsors (8)

Shawn Dooley (R)*, Donnie Berthiaume (R), Nick Boldyga (R), David DeCoste (R), Steven Howitt (R), Joe McKenna (R), Kelly Pease (R), Mike Soter (R),

Last Action

Accompanied a study order, see H5026 (on 09/12/2022)

Official Document

https://malegislature.gov/Bills/192/H787

(15 Companion Bills)

Version:

Document Type	Source Location
State Bill Page	https://malegislature.gov/Bills/192/H787
Bill	https://malegislature.gov/Bills/192/H787.pdf

Bill	Bill Name	Last Action	Type
H1438	Setting a housing production goal for the Commonwealth	Accompanied a study order, see H5274	Similar To
H3828	Relative to the preparation of certain bilingual ballots in the city of Malden	New draft substituted, see H4793	Similar To
H3935	Relative to town elections in the town of Wilbraham	Signed by the Governor, Chapter 15 of the Acts of 2022	Similar To
H3950	Relative to voting options for the city of Lowell for the 2021 municipal elections	Accompanied a study order, see H5026	Similar To
H3983	Authorizing the city of Cambridge to offer early voting in municipal elections	Accompanied a study order, see H5026	Similar To
H5026	Study Order	No further action taken	Replaced by
H71	Further providing for early voting by mail	New draft substituted, see H73	Similar To
H788	Making voting obligatory and increasing turnout in elections	Accompanied a study order, see H5026	Similar To
S2049	Establishing Massachusetts Freedom Day	Accompanied a study order, see S2681	Similar To
S2519	To establish free access to ride to elections in Massachusetts (FARE)	Bill reported favorably by committee and referred to the committee on Senate Ways and Means	Similar To
S28	Further providing for early voting by mail	Hearing scheduled from 03/4/2021 @ 4:00 PM until 03/08/2021 @ 10:00 AM in Written Testimony Only	Similar To
S448	Ensuring municipal participation of the widest eligible range	Accompanied a study order, see H5026	Similar To
S464	Relative to fair elections	Accompanied a study order, see H5026	Similar To
S477	To expand voter access by making mail-in voting permanent	Accompanied a study order, see H5026	Similar To
S485	Providing a local option for ranked choice voting in municipal elections	Accompanied a study order, see H5026	Similar To

Bill > H787

MA H787

summary

Introduced Session

Bill Summary

AI Summary

Committee Categories

Sponsors (8)

Last Action

Official Document

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