# Massachusetts H 3898: An Act to amend the town of Natick home rule charter Massachusetts H 3898, An Act to amend the town of Natick home rule charter, is a 194th General Court (2025-2026) House bill sponsored by David Paul Linsky (Democratic); status signed, last action 2026-03-12 (Signed by the Governor, Chapter 39 of the Acts of 2026) (as of 2026-11-01). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-H3898-194 - As of: 2026-11-01 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Bill: Massachusetts H 3898 - State: Massachusetts - Session: 194th General Court (2025-2026) - Title: An Act to amend the town of Natick home rule charter - Status: signed - Chamber: House - Introduced: 2025-03-13 - Last action: 2026-03-12, Signed by the Governor, Chapter 39 of the Acts of 2026 - Sponsor: David Paul Linsky (Democratic) - Cosponsors: 0 - Subjects: Municipalities and Regional Government, House Steering, Policy and Scheduling, Bills in the Third Reading - Touches household money: no - Roll calls: 1 (11 yes, 0 no in all) - Economic provisions PRIA read: 8 ## Summary No summary available. ## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read - Clear rules for petitions and vacancies: benefit, low. Ten registered voters can place a petition on the annual town meeting warrant; 100 are needed for a special town meeting. The Select Board must send any zoning change proposals to the Planning Board within 14 days. The Moderator may require agency reps to attend meetings and speak on related articl… - Clear rules for town hiring and terms: benefit, low. The Select Board appoints the Town Manager and key boards: three registrars of voters (three‑year staggered terms), a five‑member board of appeals plus three associates (three‑year staggered terms), and a seven‑member conservation commission (three‑year staggered terms). The Town Manager appoints t… - Clearer budget and five-year capital plan: benefit, low. The school superintendent sends the proposed school budget to the Town Manager in time to be included. The manager submits a preliminary town budget before spring town meeting and publishes a summary with where to read it. The budget shows last year, this year, and next year; explains differences f… - Modern public notice and charter wording: benefit, low. A “local newspaper” can include the town website, temporary signs, social media, or other methods the Select Board approves in good faith at a public hearing. The law defines what a “multiple member body” is. Charter words cover singular or plural and include all genders. These updates make notices… - Voters decide Natick charter changes: benefit, low. Natick puts these charter changes on the next regular municipal or state ballot, or an earlier special election if called. If more voters choose Yes than No, the changes take effect right away. If not, they do not take effect. - Clear process to reorganize town agencies: mixed, low. Town Meeting may create, merge, or abolish town agencies by by‑law and set their powers and membership, unless general law or the charter forbids it. After consulting the Select Board, the Town Manager can propose reorganization plans, publish notice, hold hearings, and send a plan to Town Meeting.… - State ranked-choice rules apply in Natick: mixed, low. When state ranked‑choice voting rules are in effect for local races, Natick’s preliminary election procedures do not apply. State election law governs those local elections. - Town Manager leads day-to-day operations: mixed, low. The Select Board is the town’s chief executive and appoints a professional Town Manager. The manager’s first six months are probation. Terms are up to 3 years by majority vote, or up to 5 years by a two‑thirds vote. The manager works full time and needs prior written board approval for any other jo… ## Sponsors and cosponsors - Sponsor: David Paul Linsky (Democratic), House ## Roll call votes | Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 2025-07-02 | committee | Committee Favorable: Ought to Pass | pass | 11 | 0 | | ## Actions (21) - 2026-03-12: Signed by the Governor, Chapter 39 of the Acts of 2026 - 2026-03-05: Enacted and laid before the Governor (Senate) - 2026-03-02: Enacted (House) - 2026-03-02: Senate concurred in the further House amendment (Senate) - 2026-03-02: Rules suspended (Senate) - 2026-02-26: House concurred in the Senate amendment with a further amendment (House) - 2026-02-26: Rules suspended (House) - 2026-02-09: Referred to the committee on Bills in the Third Reading (House) - 2026-02-05: Passed to be engrossed (Senate) - 2026-02-05: Bills in the Third Reading report accepted, see S2953 (Senate) - 2026-02-05: Read third (title changed) (Senate) - 2026-02-05: Taken out of the Orders of the Day (Senate) - 2026-02-05: The report was accepted (Senate) - 2025-09-18: Read, rules suspended, read second and ordered to a third reading (Senate) - 2025-09-15: Read third and passed to be engrossed (House) - 2025-07-30: Read second and ordered to a third reading (House) - 2025-07-28: Committee reported that the matter be placed in the Orders of the Day for the next sitting for a second reading (House) - 2025-07-14: Bill reported favorably by committee and referred to the committee on House Steering, Policy and Scheduling (House) - 2025-05-05: Hearing scheduled for 05/13/2025 from 01:00 PM-05:00 PM in B-1 (legislature) - 2025-03-17: Senate concurred (Senate) - 2025-03-13: Referred to the committee on Municipalities and Regional Government (House) ## Bill text - Chapter 39 of the Acts of 2026, 2026-03-12: [PDF](https://malegislature.gov/Bills/194/H3898.pdf) ## Related bills - H 5435: An Act authorizing the town of Topsfield to continue to employment of police chief Neal Hovey (passed senate) - H 4585: An Act authorizing the town of Auburn to offer expanded senior property tax abatements (signed) - H 5515: An Act to increase the value of estates eligible for abatements pursuant to M.G.L. chapter 59, section 5, clauses seventeenth D and forty-first C in the town o… (passed house) - H 5520: An Act exempting George Patrinos from the maximum age requirement age for the position of firefighter in the town of Dudley (signed) - H 5429: An Act providing injured on duty compensation to Chelmsford firefighter Nicholas Spinale (second reading) - H 3909: An Act authorizing the Provincetown year-round market rate rental housing trust to acquire year-round housing occupancy restrictions (signed) ## Sources - [Chapter 39 of the Acts of 2026 (PDF)](https://malegislature.gov/Bills/194/H3898.pdf) ## Related - [H 5435: An Act authorizing the town of Topsfield to continue to employment of police ch…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-H5435-194) - [H 4585: An Act authorizing the town of Auburn to offer expanded senior property tax aba…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-H4585-194) - [H 5515: An Act to increase the value of estates eligible for abatements pursuant to M.G…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-H5515-194) - [H 5520: An Act exempting George Patrinos from the maximum age requirement age for the p…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-H5520-194) - [H 5429: An Act providing injured on duty compensation to Chelmsford firefighter Nichola…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-H5429-194) - [H 3909: An Act authorizing the Provincetown year-round market rate rental housing trust…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-H3909-194) - [Massachusetts bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/massachusetts/bills) - [Massachusetts state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/massachusetts) - [All state legislation](https://policyrisk.com/state-bills) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-H3898-194 (as of 2026-11-01).