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HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3610 FILED ON: 1/17/2025
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 856
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
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PRESENTED BY:
Michael J. Moran
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To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:
The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
An Act relative to reprecincting.
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PETITION OF:
NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Michael J. Moran18th Suffolk1/17/2025 1 of 6
HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3610 FILED ON: 1/17/2025
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 856
By Representative Moran of Boston, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 856) of
Michael J. Moran relative to reprecincting. Election Laws.
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
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In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
(2025-2026)
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An Act relative to reprecincting.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:
1 SECTION 1. Section 9A of chapter 9 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2020
2Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting before the first paragraph the following
3paragraph:-
4 For the purposes of this section “decennial division” shall mean the decennial division of
5congressional, representative, senatorial and councillor districts as set forth in sections 1 through
67A, inclusive, of chapter 54.
7 SECTION 2. Said section 9A of said chapter 9, as so appearing, is hereby amended by
8adding the following 7 paragraphs:-
9 The commission shall not approve the division of any city or town into wards and
10precincts as required by chapter 54 until the final approval by the governor of the enacted
11decennial division. 2 of 6
12 The commission shall minimize the approval of sub-precincts and not impose a strict
13mathematical formula on the population deviation for municipal precincts unless the creation of
14a sub-precinct is required to meet a plus or minus 10 per cent population deviation for municipal
15representative districts.
16 The commission shall provide the state secretary with the meeting notice and minutes of
17all commission meetings, which shall be posted on the secretary’s website.
18 The commission shall provide the state secretary an electronic geographic information
19system shapefile or equivalent containing the population of every city and town ward, precinct
20and sub-precinct within the boundaries of the approved congressional, councillor, senatorial and
21representative districts and an ASCII compatible file containing a written description of all
22changes in the municipality, ward, precinct and county description of each approved
23congressional, councillor, senatorial and representative districts as will be reported by the
24secretary pursuant to section 133 of chapter 54 no later than 30 days after the final approval by
25the governor of the enacted decennial division and shall be posted on the secretary’s website.
26 The state secretary will maintain and update any subsequent changes to city and town
27ward, precinct and sub-precinct and shall post those changes on the secretary’s website.
28 The state secretary shall establish, implement and maintain an internet portal on the
29secretary’s website to display and access commission records including but not limited to
30commission meeting notices, meeting minutes, votes approving municipal ward, precincts and
31sub-precincts, geographic information system shapefiles of approved voting districts,
32congressional, councillor, senatorial and representative district descriptions by municipality,
33including ward and precinct for any municipality split into multiple representative districts, and a 3 of 6
34complete listing of every precinct as will be reported by the secretary in public document 43
35pursuant to section 133 of chapter 54.
36 The commission shall deliver to the senate president and speaker of the house of
37representatives, within 7 days following the approval of all municipal wards and precincts as
38required by chapter 54, an electronic geographic information system shapefile or equivalent
39containing the population of every city and town ward, precinct and sub-precinct within the
40boundaries of the approved congressional, councillor, senatorial and representative districts and
41an ASCII compatible file containing a written description of all changes in the municipality,
42ward, precinct and county description of each approved congressional, councillor, senatorial and
43representative district.
44 SECTION 3. Section 1 of chapter 54 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby
45amended by striking out, in lines 1 and 2, the words “In the year 2001, and every tenth year
46thereafter, no later than June fifteenth” and inserting in place thereof the words:- No later than 30
47days after the final approval by the Governor of the enacted decennial division.
48 SECTION 4. Said section 1 of said chapter 54, as so appearing, is hereby further
49amended by striking out the fourth paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following
50paragraph:-
51 The state secretary shall assist towns by producing draft precincts for future submission
52to the Local Election Districts Review Commission established under section 9A; provided,
53however, that any such draft map and precincts be compiled and updated into one electronic
54geographic information system shapefile or equivalent containing the population of every city 4 of 6
55and town ward, precinct, and sub-precinct and shall deliver said file to the president of the senate
56and speaker of the house of representatives and shall post the file on the secretary’s website.
57 SECTION 5. Said chapter 54, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting
58after section 1 the following section:-
59 Section 1A. For the purposes of this chapter “decennial division” shall mean the
60decennial division of congressional, representative, senatorial and councillor districts as set forth
61in sections 1 through 7A, inclusive.
62 SECTION 6. Section 2 of said chapter 54, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking
63out, in lines 14 and 15, the words “on the thirty-first day of December” and inserting in place
64thereof the following words:- 14 days prior to the state primary preceding the next biennial
65election.
66 SECTION 7. Said section 2 of said chapter 54, as so appearing, is hereby further
67amended by striking out the second paragraph.
68 SECTION 8. Section 5 of said chapter 54, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding
69the following paragraph:-
70 Every city, including those cities not subject to sections 1 through section 5, inclusive, of
71chapter 54, shall deliver to the local election districts review commission established under
72section 9A of chapter 9 no later than 30 days after the final approval by the governor of the
73enacted decennial division an electronic geographic information system shapefile or equivalent
74containing the population of every city and town ward, precinct and sub-precinct within the
75boundaries of the approved congressional, councillor, senatorial and representative districts and 5 of 6
76an ASCII compatible file containing a written description of all changes in the municipality,
77ward, precinct, and county description of each approved congressional, councillor, senatorial and
78representative district.
79 SECTION 9. Section 6 of said chapter 54, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking
80out, in lines 1 and 2, the words “In the year 2001, and every tenth year thereafter, no later than
81June fifteenth” and inserting in place thereof the words:- No later than 30 days after the final
82approval by the governor of the enacted decennial division.
83 SECTION 10. Said section 6 of said chapter 54, as so appearing, is hereby further
84amended by striking out the sixth paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following
85paragraph:-
86 The state secretary shall assist towns by producing draft precincts for future submission
87to the Local Election Districts Review Commission established under section 9A; provided,
88however, that any such draft map and precincts be compiled and updated into one electronic
89geographic information system shapefile or equivalent containing the population of every city
90and town ward, precinct, and sub-precinct and shall deliver said file to the president of the senate
91and speaker of the house of representatives and shall post the file on the secretary’s website.
92 SECTION 11. Section 8 of said chapter 54, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding
93the following paragraph:-
94 Every town including those not subject to sections 6 and section 7 shall deliver to the
95local election districts review commission established under section 9A of chapter 9 no later than
9630 days after the final approval by the governor of the enacted decennial division an electronic
97geographic information system shapefile or equivalent containing the population of every city 6 of 6
98and town ward, precinct and sub-precinct within the boundaries of the approved congressional,
99councillor, senatorial and representative districts and an ASCII compatible file containing a
100written description of all changes in the municipality, ward, precinct and county description of
101each approved congressional, councillor, senatorial and representative districts.
102 SECTION 12. Section 9 of said chapter 54, as so appearing, is hereby amended by
103inserting after the word “precincts;”, in line 2, the following words:- provided, that such precinct
104is in a town the territory of which in such formation is not included in 2 or more congressional,
105representative, senatorial or councillor districts.
106 SECTION 13. Section 9A of said chapter 54, as so appearing, is hereby amended by
107striking out the second paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:-
108 Any precinct established or remaining unchanged following the formation of
109congressional, councillor, senatorial and representative districts based on the decennial federal
110census shall remain unchanged and, if such precinct is in a town the territory of which in such
111formation is included in 2 or more congressional, representative or senatorial districts, shall
112remain unchanged for the purpose of electing such officers until the next decennial division.