Massachusetts 2025-2026 Regular Session

Massachusetts Senate Bill S1131 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	1 of 1
2	2	SENATE DOCKET, NO. 2342 FILED ON: 1/17/2025
3	3	SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1131
4	4	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
5	5	_________________
6	6	PRESENTED BY:
7	7	Adam Gomez
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 juvenile fees, fines, and restitution.
13	13	_______________
14	14	PETITION OF:
15	15	NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :Adam GomezHampden 1 of 8
16	16	SENATE DOCKET, NO. 2342 FILED ON: 1/17/2025
17	17	SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1131
18	18	By Mr. Gomez, a petition (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 1131) of Adam Gomez for
19	19	legislation relative to juvenile fees, fines, and restitution. The Judiciary.
20	20	[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
21	21	SEE SENATE, NO. 1005 OF 2023-2024.]
22	22	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
23	23	_______________
24	24	In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
25	25	(2025-2026)
26	26	_______________
27	27	An Act relative to juvenile fees, fines, and restitution.
28	28	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
29	29	of the same, as follows:
30	30	1 SECTION 1. Section 178Q of Chapter 6, as appearing in the General Laws, as appearing
31	31	2in the 2022 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after “upon every sex offender” the
32	32	3following:
33	33	4 except those who committed their offense while under the age of criminal majority.
34	34	5 SECTION 2. Chapter 119, as appearing in the General Law is hereby amended by
35	35	6striking out Section 29A.
36	36	7 SECTION 3. Section 55 of Chapter 119 of the General Laws is hereby amended by
37	37	8striking out the following words from the first paragraph:- 2 of 8
38	38	9 A parent, guardian or person with whom such child resides who is summoned to appear
39	39	10before the court to show cause why such child shall not be adjudged a delinquent child by reason
40	40	11of having committed the offense of willful or malicious destruction or wanton destruction of
41	41	12property, in violation of the provisions of section one hundred and twenty-seven or one hundred
42	42	13and twenty-seven A of chapter two hundred and sixty-six, and who willfully fails to so appear
43	43	14shall be punished by a fine of not less than two hundred nor more than three hundred dollars.
44	44	15 SECTION 4. Section 58B of Chapter 119 of the General Laws is hereby amended by
45	45	16inserting after the words “ section sixty-two “ the following words:-
46	46	17 subject to a determination of the youth's ability to pay. Restitution shall not be ordered in
47	47	18excess of the youth’s ability to pay and the length of time it may take a youth to pay may not be
48	48	19considered in determining the length of probation.”, and by amending it further by striking out
49	49	20the following words “; and in addition to or in lieu of such disposition, the court may impose
50	50	21upon such child a fine not exceeding the amount of the fine authorized for the violation of such
51	51	22statute, by-law, ordinance or regulation. Any fine imposed under the authority of this section
52	52	23shall be collected, recovered and paid over in the manner provided by chapters two hundred and
53	53	24seventy-nine and two hundred and eighty; provided, however, that if any child shall neglect, fail
54	54	25or refuse to pay a fine imposed under this section, he may be arrested upon order of the court and
55	55	26brought before the court, which may thereupon place him in the care of a probation officer or
56	56	27commit him to the custody of the department of youth services; but no such child shall be
57	57	28committed to any jail, house of correction, or correctional institution of the commonwealth.
58	58	29 SECTION 5. Chapter 119, as appearing in the General Law is hereby amended by adding
59	59	30the following section: 3 of 8
60	60	31 Section 58C. Notwithstanding any general or special law or rule or regulation to the
61	61	32contrary, no fine or fee shall apply to any person based on an offense committed while under the
62	62	33age of criminal majority or the person’s parent, guardian, or legal custodian.
63	63	34 SECTION 6. Section 59 of Chapter 119, as appearing in the General Law, is hereby
64	64	35amended by inserting after “warrant for his arrest” the following words:
65	65	36 except that a warrant may not issue solely for nonpayment of fines or fees.
66	66	37 SECTION 7. Section 62 of Chapter 119 of the General Laws is hereby amended by
67	67	38striking the following words, “the court may require, as a condition thereof, that he shall make
68	68	39restitution or reparation to the injured person to such an extent and in such sum as the court
69	69	40determines. If the payment is not made at once, it shall be made to the probation officer, who
70	70	41shall give a receipt therefor, keep a record of the payment, pay the money to said injured person,
71	71	42and keep on file his receipt therefor.” And replacing in place thereof the following words:-
72	72	43 the court may hold a restitution hearing. There shall be no mandatory order of restitution,
73	73	44and any order shall be made at the discretion of the presiding judge. At a restitution hearing, the
74	74	45court shall make a determination of a youth’s ability to pay. The amount set may not exceed the
75	75	46youth’s ability to pay and the length of time it may take a youth to pay may not be taken into
76	76	47consideration in determining the length of probation. The youth’s term of probation shall not be
77	77	48extended or revoked solely based upon the nonpayment of restitution. There shall be a
78	78	49presumption of inability to pay, which may be rebutted at a restitution hearing by evidence
79	79	50establishing that the youth (1) has an income that is 250% of the federal poverty line,
80	80	51independent of parental or other family income; (2) is not currently incarcerated, detained, or in
81	81	52out-of-home placement, and (3) is not receiving needs-tested government benefits, including but 4 of 8
82	82	53not limited to free school lunch, SNAP, TANF, SSI, or housing assistance. A juvenile for whom
83	83	54restitution is ordered who is not able to make restitution payments in the manner ordered by the
84	84	55court may move the court for a modification of the restitution order. If the court determines the
85	85	56juvenile is unable to pay the restitution in the time and manner ordered, the court may modify its
86	86	57prior order to allow additional time for payment, reduce the amount of restitution, or eliminate
87	87	58the amount of restitution ordered.
88	88	59 SECTION 8. Section 63 of Chapter 119, as appearing in the General Law, is hereby
89	89	60amended by inserting after “any person” the following:
90	90	61 over the age of criminal majority
91	91	62 SECTION 9. Section 145 of Chapter 127, as appearing in the General Law, is hereby
92	92	63amended by striking section (e) and replacing it with the following:
93	93	64 (e) A justice of the trial court shall not commit a person to a prison, place of confinement
94	94	65or the department of youth services solely for the non-payment of money based on conduct that
95	95	66occurred committed while under the age of criminal majority.
96	96	67 SECTION 10. Section 2 of Chapter 211D, as appearing in the General Law is hereby
97	97	68amended by inserting after the words, “fee for the appointment of counsel”, the following
98	98	69words:-
99	99	70 , except that no one accused of committing an offense while under the age of criminal
100	100	71majority will be assessed any fee for the appointment of counsel 5 of 8
101	101	72 SECTION 11. Section 2A of Chapter 211D, as appearing in the General Law is hereby
102	102	73amended by striking out the words “under 18 years of age,” and inserting in place thereof the
103	103	74following:
104	104	75 under the age of criminal majority
105	105	76 SECTION 12. Section 8 of Chapter 258B, as appearing in the General Law is hereby
106	106	77amended by striking the following words:- “who has attained the age of seventeen years and”
107	107	78 SECTION 13. Said section 8 of Chapter 258B, as appearing in the General Law is further
108	108	79amended by striking the following sentence:- “The court shall impose an assessment of $45
109	109	80against any person who has attained the age of fourteen years and who is adjudicated a
110	110	81delinquent child or against whom a finding of sufficient facts for a finding of delinquency is
111	111	82made.”
112	112	83 SECTION 14. Said section 8 of Chapter 258B, as appearing in the General Law is further
113	113	84amended by striking the following words:- “or adjudication”
114	114	85 SECTION 15. Said section 8 of Chapter 258B, as appearing in the General Law is further
115	115	86amended by striking the following words:- “; provided, however, that the total assessment
116	116	87against a person who has not attained seventeen years shall not exceed thirty dollars”
117	117	88 SECTION 16. Said section 8 of Chapter 258B, as appearing in the General Law is further
118	118	89amended by striking the following words:- “or adjudication of delinquency”
119	119	90 SECTION 17. Section 1 of Chapter 258C of the General Laws is hereby amended by
120	120	91striking the words, “''Victim'', a person who suffers personal physical or psychological injury or
121	121	92death and inserting in place thereof:- 6 of 8
122	122	93 ''Victim'', a person who suffers a financial loss as the result of a crime committed by a
123	123	94person under the age of criminal majority; personal physical or psychological injury; or death:
124	124	95 SECTION 18. Section 2 of Chapter 258C of the General Laws is hereby amended by
125	125	96striking subsection (a) and inserting in place thereof:-
126	126	97 (a) No compensation shall be paid under this chapter unless the division finds that a
127	127	98crime was committed and that such crime (i) was committed by a person under the age of
128	128	99criminal majority and resulted in a financial loss to the victim or (ii) directly resulted in personal
129	129	100physical or psychological injury to, or death of, the victim.
130	130	101 SECTION 19. Section 2 of Chapter 258C of the General Laws is hereby amended by
131	131	102striking subsection (c) and inserting in place thereof:-
132	132	103 (c) A claimant shall be eligible for compensation only if such claimant cooperates with
133	133	104law enforcement authorities in the investigation and prosecution of the crime in which the victim
134	134	105suffered a financial loss as a result of a crime committed by a person under the age of criminal
135	135	106majority or was injured or killed unless the claimant demonstrates that he possesses or possessed
136	136	107a reasonable excuse for failing to cooperate.
137	137	108 SECTION 20. Section 47 of Chapter 265, as appearing in the General Laws, is hereby
138	138	109amended by inserting after the words “paid by the probationer,” the following words:-
139	139	110 over the age of criminal majority
140	140	111 SECTION 21. Section 30 of Chapter 276, as appearing in the General Laws, is hereby
141	141	112amended by inserting in the first sentence after the words “any person,” the following words:- 7 of 8
142	142	113 excepting individuals alleged to have committed an offense while under the age of
143	143	114criminal majority,
144	144	115 SECTION 22. Section 87A of Chapter 276, as appearing in the General Laws, is hereby
145	145	116amended by striking out the words, or (ii) solely on the basis of possession or use of medical
146	146	117marijuana obtained in compliance with and in quantities consistent with applicable state
147	147	118regulations if that person received a written certification from a healthcare professional for the
148	148	119use of medical marijuana to treat a debilitating medical condition and the person possesses a
149	149	120valid medical marijuana registration card and if the quantity in the person's possession is not
150	150	121greater than the amount recommended in the healthcare professional's written certification.” and
151	151	122inserting in place thereof, the following words:-
152	152	123 (ii) solely on the basis of possession or use of medical marijuana obtained in compliance
153	153	124with and in quantities consistent with applicable state regulations if that person received a written
154	154	125certification from a healthcare professional for the use of medical marijuana to treat a debilitating
155	155	126medical condition and the person possesses a valid medical marijuana registration card and if the
156	156	127quantity in the person's possession is not greater than the amount recommended in the healthcare
157	157	128professional's written certification. or (iii) solely on the basis of nonpayment of a fine, fee or
158	158	129other monetary obligation imposed as a result of an offense committed while under the age of
159	159	130criminal majority.
160	160	131 SECTION 23. Section 6 of Chapter 280, as appearing in the General Laws, is hereby
161	161	132amended after the words “criminal defendant” the following words:-
162	162	133 over the age of criminal majority 8 of 8
163	163	134 SECTION 24. On the effective date of this section, the balance of any court-assessed or
164	164	135court-ordered fines or costs imposed against a juvenile, or other person who is liable for the
165	165	136support of a juvenile, are unenforceable and not collectable.