Massachusetts 2025-2026 Regular Session

Massachusetts House Bill H688 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	1 of 1
2	2	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 1518 FILED ON: 1/15/2025
3	3	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 688
4	4	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
5	5	_________________
6	6	PRESENTED BY:
7	7	Lindsay N. Sabadosa , (BY REQUEST)
8	8	_________________
9	9	To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
10	10	Court assembled:
11	11	The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
12	12	An Act relative to public school workplace security.
13	13	_______________
14	14	PETITION OF:
15	15	NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Benjamin Tobin1/15/2025 1 of 3
16	16	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 1518 FILED ON: 1/15/2025
17	17	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 688
18	18	By Representative Sabadosa of Northampton (by request), a petition (accompanied by bill,
19	19	House, No. 688) of Benjamin Tobin relative to legal protections for certain educators and school
20	20	staff. Education.
21	21	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
22	22	_______________
23	23	In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
24	24	(2025-2026)
25	25	_______________
26	26	An Act relative to public school workplace security.
27	27	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
28	28	of the same, as follows:
29	29	1 Section 1: Purpose
30	30	2 The purpose of this bill is to provide legal protections for educators and staff against
31	31	3unjust, antagonistic, and harmful treatment by school administrators and to establish
32	32	4accountability measures for administrative conduct within Massachusetts public schools to
33	33	5ensure that staff. Additionally, this act will ensure that conflicts of interest by school
34	34	6administrators are investigated by the attorney general's office rather than the Department of
35	35	7Elementary and Secondary Education.
36	36	8 Section 2: Definitions
37	37	9 1. "Educator" refers to any teacher, instructor, or staff member employed in a public
38	38	10school. 2 of 3
39	39	11 2. "Administrator" refers to any individual serving in a managerial capacity within a
40	40	12school or school district.
41	41	13 3. "Vindictive actions" are actions that are retaliatory in nature, aimed at punishing an
42	42	14educator for lawful and ethical conduct. These actions would also fall under the category of
43	43	15bullying, harassment, and retaliation and could include intentionally negative performance
44	44	16reviews to defame the educator, creating a toxic work environment, placing staff in situations
45	45	17that are unethical, harmful, or unsafe, asking staff to perform duties outside of their licensure (ex.
46	46	18moderate disabilities working with severe disabilities and behavior), not providing appropriate
47	47	19training before asking educators to engage in a situation.
48	48	20 Section 3: Provisions
49	49	21 1. Protection Against Retaliation: a. No educator shall be subject to disciplinary action,
50	50	22harassment, or any form of retaliation for reporting misconduct or advocating for educational
51	51	23policies that promote the well-being of students. b. Educators shall have the right to appeal any
52	52	24disciplinary actions taken against them that they believe are the result of vindictive actions by
53	53	25administrators.
54	54	26 2. Establishment of a Review Board: a. A Review Board shall be established within each
55	55	27school district to investigate complaints made by educators against administrators. This board
56	56	28shall be anonymous b. The Review Board shall consist of teachers, administrators, and
57	57	29community representatives to create a balanced perspective on administrative conduct.
58	58	30 3. Accountability Measures: a. Administrators found to engage in retaliatory actions
59	59	31against educators shall face disciplinary measures, which may include suspension or termination
60	60	32of employment and removal of licensure b. An annual report shall be submitted to the state 3 of 3
61	61	33legislature detailing complaints filed, outcomes of investigations, and actions taken against
62	62	34administrators.
63	63	35 4. Attorney General's Office: Complaints against school administrators shall be
64	64	36investigated by the attorney general's office rather than the Department of Education given the
65	65	37Department's clear conflict of interest in investigating their own administrators and their vested
66	66	38interest in ensuring the continuity of administrators. The attorney general shall be given broad
67	67	39powers to investigate and penalize administrators found to have conflicts of interest and or who
68	68	40have engaged in aggressive or unjustly harmful actions against educators.
69	69	41 Section 4: Implementation
70	70	42 This act shall take effect immediately upon passage, and school districts will implement
71	71	43necessary training and awareness programs for both educators and administrators regarding the
72	72	44provisions of this law.
73	73	45 Section 5: Severability
74	74	46 If any provision of this act is found to be invalid, the remaining provisions shall remain in
75	75	47effect.