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Massachusetts House Bill H1032

Massachusetts 2025-2026 Regular Session

Massachusetts House Bill H1032 Compare Versions

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22 HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 4220 FILED ON: 1/17/2025
33 HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1032
44 The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
55 _________________
66 PRESENTED BY:
77 David M. Rogers and Tram T. Nguyen
88 _________________
99 To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
1010 Court assembled:
1111 The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
1212 An Act to establish environmental accountability in the fashion industry.
1313 _______________
1414 PETITION OF:
1515 NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:David M. Rogers24th Middlesex1/17/2025Tram T. Nguyen18th Essex1/17/2025 1 of 15
1616 HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 4220 FILED ON: 1/17/2025
1717 HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1032
1818 By Representatives Rogers of Cambridge and Nguyen of Andover, a petition (accompanied by
1919 bill, House, No. 1032) of David M. Rogers and Tram T. Nguyen for legislation to establish
2020 environmental accountability in the fashion industry. Environment and Natural Resources.
2121 The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
2222 _______________
2323 In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
2424 (2025-2026)
2525 _______________
2626 An Act to establish environmental accountability in the fashion industry.
2727 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
2828 of the same, as follows:
2929 1 SECTION 1. Chapter 29 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after
3030 2section 2JJJJJJ, added by section 7 of chapter 248 of the acts of 2024, the following section:-
3131 3 Section 2KKKKKK. (a) There shall be established and set up on the books of the
3232 4commonwealth a separate fund to be known as the Fashion Environmental Accountability Fund
3333 5for the purpose of requiring fashion sellers, as defined in subsection (a) of section 115 of chapter
3434 693, to be accountable for adherence to environmental standards. The attorney general shall
3535 7administer the fund to assist in verification and enforcement of environmental due diligence by
3636 8fashion sellers pursuant to section 115 of chapter 93. There shall be credited to the fund: (i)
3737 9revenue from appropriations and other money authorized by the general court and specifically
3838 10designated to be credited to the fund; (ii) funds from public and private sources such as gifts,
3939 11grants and donations to further environmental accountability; and (iii) interest earned on money 2 of 15
4040 12in the fund. Amounts credited to the fund shall not be subject to further appropriation and any
4141 13money remaining in the fund at the end of a fiscal year shall not revert to the General Fund.
4242 14 (b) Amounts credited to the fund may be expended, without further appropriation, by the
4343 15attorney general for purposes related to the instruction of fashion sellers on environmental due
4444 16diligence, including, but not limited to: (i) development of curricular educational materials to
4545 17fashion sellers pursuant to subsection (l) of section 115 of chapter 93; and (ii) professional
4646 18development training, including the provision of trainings, seminars, conferences and materials
4747 19for fashion sellers to use in the teaching proper environmental due diligence.
4848 20 (c) Amounts received from private sources shall be approved by the attorney general and
4949 21subject to review before being deposited in the fund to ensure that pledged funds are not
5050 22accompanied by conditions, explicit or implicit, on the implementation of human rights and
5151 23environmental due diligence that may be detrimental to the neutral and rigorous teaching of
5252 24environmental and social standards or unduly influence the direction of environmental and
5353 25human rights policy. The review shall be made publicly available on the attorney general’s
5454 26website.
5555 27 (d) Annually, not later than October 1, the attorney general shall report to the clerks of
5656 28the house of representatives and senate, the joint committee on judiciary and the house and
5757 29senate committees on ways and means on the fund’s activities. The report shall include, but not
5858 30be limited to: (i) the source and amount of funds received; (ii) the expenditures made from the
5959 31fund and the purposes of such expenditures; (iii) any funds provided to institutions and other
6060 32stakeholder organizations; (iv) anticipated revenue and expenditure projections for the next fiscal
6161 33year; and (v) the number of fashion sellers that have used the fund to implement a new program 3 of 15
6262 34or enhance or maintain current programming. The report shall be publicly available on the
6363 35attorney general’s website.
6464 36 SECTION 2. Chapter 93 of the General Laws is hereby amended by adding the following
6565 37section:-
6666 38 Section 115. (a) For the purposes of this section the following words shall, unless the
6767 39context clearly requires otherwise, have the following meanings:
6868 40 “Due diligence report”, a document prepared by the fashion seller to
6969 41communicate all relevant information concerning the existence, implementation and outcomes of
7070 42due diligence in order to comply with the requirements of this section and to comply with any
7171 43rules or regulations established, pursuant to this section.
7272 44 “Environmental due diligence”, the process fashion seller shall carry out to identify,
7373 45cease, prevent, mitigate, account for and remediate actual and potential adverse impacts to the
7474 46environment in their own operations and in their supply chain, in compliance with, at a
7575 47minimum, the standards outlined in the most recent Organization for Economic Cooperation and
7676 48Development Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and the Organization for Economic
7777 49Cooperation and Development Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains in the
7878 50Garment and Footwear Sector.
7979 51 “Fashion bag”, any flexible packaging made of textiles, leather or other animal products,
8080 52woven material or other similar materials intended for repeated use.
8181 53 "Fashion seller”, a business entity that sells articles of wearing apparel, footwear or
8282 54fashion bags that together exceed $100,000,000 in annual gross receipts but, shall not include the 4 of 15
8383 55sale of used wearing apparel, footwear or fashion bags, nor shall it include multi-brand retailers,
8484 56except where the apparel, footwear and fashion bags private labels of those companies together
8585 57exceed $100,000,000 in global revenue.
8686 58 “Footwear”, any covering worn or intended to be worn on the foot.
8787 59 “Gross receipts”, the gross amounts realized, otherwise known as the sum of money and
8888 60the fair market value of other property or services received, on the sale or exchange of property,
8989 61the performance of services or the use of property or capital, including rents, royalties, interest
9090 62and dividends, in a transaction that produces business income, in which the income, gain or loss
9191 63is recognized or would be recognized if the transaction were in the United States, under the
9292 64Internal Revenue Code, as applicable for purposes of this section. Amounts realized on the sale
9393 65or exchange of property shall not be reduced by the cost of goods sold or the basis of property
9494 66sold. Gross receipts, even if business income, shall not include the following items:
9595 67 (i) repayment, maturity or redemption of the principal of a loan, bond, mutual
9696 68fund, certificate of deposit or similar marketable instrument;
9797 69 (ii) the principal amount received under a repurchase agreement or other transaction
9898 70properly characterized as a loan;
9999 71 (iii) proceeds from issuance of the taxpayer's own stock or from the sale of any shares of
100100 72stock issued by a corporation that have thereafter been repurchased by said corporation. ;
101101 73 (iv) damages and other amounts received as the result of litigation;
102102 74 (v) property acquired by an agent on behalf of another;
103103 75 (vi) tax refunds and other tax benefit recoveries; 5 of 15
104104 76 (vii) pension reversions;
105105 77 (viii) contributions to capital, except for sales of securities by securities dealers;
106106 78 (ix) income from discharge of indebtedness;
107107 79 (x) amounts realized from exchanges of inventory that are not recognized under the
108108 80Internal Revenue Code;
109109 81 (xi) amounts received from transactions in intangible assets held in connection with a
110110 82treasury function of the taxpayer's unitary business and the gross receipts and overall net gains
111111 83from the maturity, redemption, sale, exchange or other disposition of those intangible assets; and
112112 84 (xii) amounts received from hedging transactions involving intangible assets.
113113 85 “Hedging transaction”, a transaction related to the taxpayer's trading function involving
114114 86futures and options transactions for the purpose of hedging price risk of the products or
115115 87commodities consumed, produced or sold by the taxpayer.
116116 88 “Independently verified”, audited by a verification body approved by the attorney
117117 89general.
118118 90 “Open data principles”, data that can be freely used, re-used and redistributed by anyone.
119119 91Such data shall be findable or easily discoverable on a website or within a database, accessible or
120120 92available in a machine readable, convenient, modifiable form and published as a whole, complete
121121 93dataset, interoperable or able to be mixed with different data sets and reusable or provided under
122122 94an open license that permits re-use and redistribution, including the intermixing with other
123123 95datasets. 6 of 15
124124 96 “Risk-based approach”, commensurate with the likelihood and severity of the harm. The
125125 97fashion seller shall prioritize the order in which it takes action based on the likelihood and
126126 98severity of harm. Severity of impacts shall be determined according to their scale or gravity,
127127 99scope and irremediable character.
128128 100 “Significant suppliers” suppliers representing 75 per cent of fabric by volume.
129129 101 “Supply chain tiers”, a 4 tier system defined as the following:
130130 102 (i) tier 1: suppliers who produce finished goods for fashion sellers, including
131131 103suppliers’ subcontractors, who provide the following services including, but not limited to
132132 104sewing and embroidering;
133133 105 (ii) tier 2: suppliers to tier 1, including subcontractors, who provide the following
134134 106services or goods including, but not limited to knitting, weaving, washing, dyeing, finishing,
135135 107printing for finished goods and components and materials for finished goods when they are
136136 108stand-alone operations and not integrated with tier 1. Components shall mean materials used to
137137 109build a product including, but not limited to buttons, zippers, rubber soles, down and fusibles;
138138 110 (iii) tier 3: suppliers to tier 2 suppliers, including subcontractors, who process raw
139139 111materials such as spinning; and
140140 112 (iv) tier 4: companies, including subcontractors, that provide raw materials to tier
141141 1133.
142142 114 “Wearing apparel”, any costume or article of clothing worn or intended to be worn by
143143 115individuals. 7 of 15
144144 116 (b) Every fashion seller shall effectively carry out environmental due diligence for the
145145 117portions of their business related to wearing apparel, footwear or fashion bags, including wearing
146146 118apparel, footwear or fashion bags produced as a private label, which shall include:
147147 119 (1) Supply chain mapping consisting of:
148148 120 (i) companies taking a risk-based approach and implementing good faith efforts to map
149149 121suppliers across tier 1 through tier 4, inclusive, of production;
150150 122 (ii) disclosure of suppliers of the production supply chain shall include: the name,
151151 123address, parent company, and product type as follows:
152152 124 (iii) (A) tier 1 suppliers shall be disclosed within 12 months of the effective date of this
153153 125section and shall contain a minimum of 80 per cent of suppliers by volume; (B) tier 2 suppliers
154154 126shall be disclosed within 2 years of the effective date of this section and shall contain a minimum
155155 127of 75 per cent of suppliers by volume; (C) tier 3 suppliers shall be disclosed within 4 years of the
156156 128effective date of this section and shall contain a minimum of 50 per cent of suppliers by volume
157157 129or dollar value; and (D) tier 4 suppliers shall be disclosed within 6 years of the effective date of
158158 130this section and shall contain a minimum of 50 per cent of suppliers by volume or dollar value.
159159 131 (2) Environmental due diligence for fashion sellers, shall include:
160160 132 (i) being in compliance with the environmental guidelines of the Organization for
161161 133Economic Cooperation and Development Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and the
162162 134Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development Due Diligence Guidance for
163163 135Responsible Supply Chains in the Garment and Footwear Sector; and 8 of 15
164164 136 (ii) requiring that a fashion seller, at a minimum: (A) embed responsible business
165165 137conduct into its policies and management systems; (B) identify areas of significant risks in the
166166 138context of its own activities and business and supply chain relationships; (C) identify, prioritize
167167 139and assess the significant potential and actual adverse impacts of those risks; (D) cease, prevent
168168 140or mitigate those risks;
169169 141 (E) track implementation and results; and
170170 142 (F) provide for or cooperate in remediation in the event of an adverse impact.
171171 143 (c) Fashion sellers shall cease, prevent or mitigate risk pursuant to subclause (D) of
172172 144clause (ii) of paragraph 2 of subsection (c) by, but not be limited to, the following:
173173 145
174174 146 (1) Fashion sellers shall incentivize improved supplier performance on environmental
175175 147impact by embedding responsible purchasing practices in its supply chain relationships and
176176 148contracts, including but not limited to, contract renewals, longer term contracts, price premiums,
177177 149providing reasonable assistance to suppliers, so that they can meeting applicable environmental
178178 150standards including but not limited to meeting carbon emission reduction targets set out in this
179179 151act, and developing pricing models that account for the cost investments.
180180 152 (2) Establish quantitative baseline and reduction targets on greenhouse gas emissions.
181181 153 Greenhouse gas emissions inventory shall be reported annually, starting in 2027 for
182182 154emissions in prior fiscal year, include absolute figures and conform with the accounting and
183183 155reporting requirements of the most recent Greenhouse Gas Protocol Corporate Accounting and
184184 156Reporting Standard, Scope 2 Guidance and, starting in 2028, the most recent Corporate Value 9 of 15
185185 157Chain Scope 3 Accounting and Reporting Standard promulgated by the World Resources
186186 158Institute and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. Greenhouse gas
187187 159emissions inventory reported in the due diligence report described in subsection (g) shall be
188188 160independently verified no less than once every 2 years. Fashion sellers shall not be subject to an
189189 161administrative penalty under this section for any misstatements with regard to scope 3 emissions
190190 162disclosures made with a reasonable basis and disclosed in good faith.
191191 163 Greenhouse gas emission reduction targets shall be near-term and long-term, covering
192192 164scopes 1, 2 and 3 emissions and align with, at a minimum, Science Based Target initiative’s most
193193 165recent target validation criteria as promulgated by World Resources Institute, Carbon Disclosure
194194 166Project, United Nations Global Compact and the World Wildlife Fund. For fashion sellers with
195195 167global revenue over $1,000,000,000 dollars, the absolute contraction approach must be used to
196196 168calculate scope 3 emissions. Fashion sellers shall meet targets and report their compliance on an
197197 169annual basis in their due diligence report, as described in said subsection (g). If found to be out
198198 170of compliance, fashion sellers shall have 18 months to remedy their emissions and return to the
199199 171necessary reduction pathway to deliver on their targets. In non-target years, non-compliance shall
200200 172mean an increase in absolute emissions in 5 consecutive years, for companies over
201201 173$1,000,000,000 in revenue. In target years, non-compliance shall mean not reaching the target.
202202 174 (3) In accordance with internationally recognized methodologies for chemical
203203 175management and wastewater testing, fashion sellers, within 2 years of the effective date of this
204204 176section, for all significant tier 2 dyeing, finishing, printing and garment washing suppliers, shall:
205205 177 (A) sample and report on wastewater chemical concentrations and water usage;
206206 178 (B) report on chemical inventory; 10 of 15
207207 179 (C) provide evidence that the supplier is in compliance with local chemical management
208208 180laws; (D) for significant suppliers that use indirect wastewater management, fashion sellers shall
209209 181(i) report the chemical concentrations of the wastewater treatment facilities; (ii) report on the
210210 182percentage of significant suppliers that have chemical remediation plans in place and
211211 183 (iii) what the fashion seller is doing to remediate. Reporting shall be independently
212212 184verified as set forth below in subsection (g) of this section.
213213 185 (d) Not later than 3 years after the effective date of this act, fashion sellers shall be
214214 186considered out of compliance if their significant tier 2 dyeing, finishing, printing and garment
215215 187suppliers have not made adequate progress in remediation of wastewater pollution concentrations
216216 188and chemical management.
217217 189 (e) In the event of an adverse impact pursuant to subclause (F) of clause (ii) of paragraph
218218 190(2) of subsection (b) of this section, remediation shall adhere to the following requirements:
219219 191 (e) Remedies in the event of an adverse impact, pursuant to subclause (F) of clause (ii) of
220220 192paragraph 2 of subsection (b) of this section:
221221 193 Remedies shall require that a fashion seller: (A) Utilize responsible exit or disengagement
222222 194strategies; and (B) consult and engage with impacted and potentially impacted stakeholders and
223223 195rights holders and their representatives; (C) seek to restore the affected locations, places or
224224 196persons, where practicable, to the state or circumstances the location, place or person would have
225225 197been in had the adverse impact not occurred; and (D) work to ensure that such remediation, to
226226 198the extent practicable, is proportionate to the significance and scale of the adverse impact; and
227227 199 11 of 15
228228 200 Remedies shall include, depending on the nature and extent of the adverse impact,
229229 201remediation, restitution and financial or non-financial compensation, including establishing
230230 202compensation funds for victims or for future outreach and educational programs, punitive
231231 203sanctions including the dismissals of staff, responsible for wrongdoing and establishing and
232232 204undertaking measures to prevent future adverse impacts, that include, but are not limited to, the
233233 205development of internal protocols, practices and procedures to prevent future adverse impacts.
234234 206 (f) The environmental due diligence requirements pursuant to this section shall not be
235235 207conditional upon the company being effectively involved in the subsidiary’s day-to-day
236236 208operations or exercising a sufficient degree of control on companies within its supply chain.
237237 209 (g). 1. Every fashion seller shall develop and submit to the attorney general annually,
238238 210beginning within 18 months of the effective date of this section, an environmental due diligence
239239 211report. Such report shall also be made publicly available on the fashion seller’s website in a
240240 212machine readable and reusable format, published in line with open data principles through a clear
241241 213and easily discoverable link to the required information. In the event the fashion seller does not
242242 214have an internet website, the company shall provide a written disclosure to any person who has
243243 215requested information within 30 days of receiving a request. Such report shall also include the
244244 216fashion seller’s annual volume of material produced, including breakdown by material type. The
245245 217due diligence report shall also contain annual activities and financial spending to support supply
246246 218chain environmental due diligence.
247247 219 2. The attorney general or the attorney general's designated administrator shall identify
248248 220and notify fashion sellers that have failed to file and that they have 30 days to file before being 12 of 15
249249 221placed on a public non-compliant list and may be referred to the attorney general for
250250 222investigation.
251251 223 3. The attorney general or the attorney general's designated administrator shall review the
252252 224environmental due diligence reports for completeness.
253253 225 4. Fashion sellers shall have 12 months from the introduction of any updated guidance
254254 226documents to integrate into their next annual due diligence report.
255255 227 5. The attorney general shall, in consultation with the department of environmental
256256 228protection, promulgate all rules and regulations necessary to implement the provisions of this
257257 229section within 6 months of the effective date of this section.
258258 230 6. The attorney general, in consultation with the department of environmental protection,
259259 231shall also develop and disseminate educational materials to fashion sellers, including providing
260260 232alerts on time sensitive issues, emerging issues and high-risk country situations and assisting
261261 233fashion sellers in improving the quality of their due diligence processes.
262262 234 7. The attorney general, in consultation with the department of environmental protection,
263263 235shall develop regulations regarding information required to be reported by fashion sellers in the
264264 236environmental due diligence report described in subsection (a) of this section.
265265 237 8. The attorney general shall develop regulations on reporting requirements that
266266 238minimizes duplication of effort and allows a fashion seller to submit a due diligence report to the
267267 239attorney general’s office that is prepared to meet other national and international reporting
268268 240requirements, including any reports required by the federal government, as long as those reports
269269 241satisfy all of the requirements of this section. 13 of 15
270270 242 9. The attorney general shall, in consultation with the department of environmental
271271 243protection, develop a process for accrediting verification bodies authorized to provide
272272 244verification services.
273273 245
274274 246 (i)The verification process shall include: (A) demonstration of qualifications of
275275 247verification staff, including their education, experience and professional licenses; (B) disclosure
276276 248of any judicial proceedings, enforcement actions or administrative actions filed against the body
277277 249within the previous 5 years; and (C) review of policies and mechanisms in place to prevent
278278 250conflicts of interest and to identify and resolve potential conflict of interest situations if they
279279 251arise.
280280 252 (ii) Verification bodies must employ and retain at least 5 total full-time staff with
281281 253expertise in the requirements they seek to verify.
282282 254 (iii) The attorney general shall require applicants to submit, at a minimum, the following
283283 255information: (A) identification of services provided by the verification body, the industries that
284284 256the body serves, and the locations where those services are provided; (B) a detailed
285285 257organizational chart that includes the verification body, its management structure and any related
286286 258entities; and (C) the verification body’s internal conflict of interest policy that identifies activities
287287 259and limits to monetary or non-monetary gifts that apply to all employees and procedures to
288288 260monitor conflicts of interest.
289289 261 (iv) Verification bodies shall not be authorized to provide services to a company where a
290290 262conflict of interest exists. A conflict of interest shall include: (A) the verification body and
291291 263reporting entity sharing any management staff or any of the senior management staff of the 14 of 15
292292 264reporting entity have been employed by the verification body, or vice versa, within the previous
293293 2652 years; (B) any employee of the verification body, or any employee of a related entity, or a
294294 266subcontractor who is a member of the verification team that has provided the reporting entity
295295 267with services related to the areas of verification, or any services designated by the attorney
296296 268general, within the previous 2 years; (C) any staff member of the verification body providing any
297297 269type of non-monetary incentive to a reporting entity to secure a verification services contract;
298298 270and (D) any additional criteria provided by the attorney general.
299299 271
300300 272 (v) Verification bodies that have been accredited by the attorney general shall notify the
301301 273attorney general within 30 days if they no longer meet the verification requirements set forth by
302302 274this section.
303303 275 (h) Compliance.
304304 276 (1) The requirements imposed on fashion sellers by this section shall be investigated and
305305 277enforced by the attorney general or an administrator designated by the attorney general to bring
306306 278civil proceedings for an injunction or fines for monetary damages as described in this section or
307307 279civil performance of a statutory duty. Fashion sellers shall be deemed non-compliant with this
308308 280section if they fail to conduct effective due diligence or fail to file a due diligence report pursuant
309309 281to this section.
310310 282 (2) The attorney general or the attorney general's designated administrator shall identify
311311 283and notify fashion sellers that have failed to file a complete due diligence report. If they fail to
312312 284file a complete report, after a period of 3 months, the attorney general shall seek enforcement for
313313 285failure to file a complete report. 15 of 15
314314 286 (3) The department of environmental protection shall review and certify effective due
315315 287diligence for environmental matters in the due diligence report and identify fashion sellers for
316316 288referral to the attorney general for any failures.
317317 289 (4) The attorney general shall compile and maintain a list of non-compliant fashion
318318 290sellers on the attorney general’s website. The attorney general shall investigate any fashion seller
319319 291who fails to file a due diligence report or fails to conduct effective due diligence, once any grace
320320 292period lapses and the fashion seller remains in non-compliance.
321321 293 (5) Fashion sellers found to be out of compliance with this section after the attorney
322322 294general or the attorney general's designated administrator as applicable, has provided notice of
323323 295noncompliance and after a 3 month period to meet obligations under this section has lapsed, may
324324 296be fined up to 2 per cent of annual revenues. Such fines shall be deposited in the Fashion
325325 297Environmental Accountability Fund established in section 2KKKKKK of chapter 29.
326326 298 (6) The attorney general or the attorney general’s designated administrator shall use a
327327 299risk-based approach in enforcement and shall publish enforcement guidelines.
328328 300 (7) Any person may report a violation of this section to the attorney general's office.
329329 301
330330 302 SECTION 3. This act shall take effect 6 months after its passage.