# Massachusetts H 4815: An Act authorizing the select board of the town of Arlington to place upon a town ballot a question to increase the number of licenses for the sale of all alcoholic beverages not to be drunk on the premises

Massachusetts H 4815, An Act authorizing the select board of the town of Arlington to place upon a town ballot a question to increase the number of licenses for the sale of all alcoholic beverages not to be drunk on the premises, is a 194th General Court (2025-2026) House bill sponsored by Joint Committee on Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure; status signed, last action 2026-02-19 (Signed by the Governor, Chapter 28 of the Acts of 2026); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-11-01).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-H4815-194
- 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 4815
- State: Massachusetts
- Session: 194th General Court (2025-2026)
- Title: An Act authorizing the select board of the town of Arlington to place upon a town ballot a question to increase the number of licenses for the sale of all alcoholic beverages not to be drunk on the premises
- Status: signed
- Chamber: House
- Introduced: 2025-12-08
- Last action: 2026-02-19, Signed by the Governor, Chapter 28 of the Acts of 2026
- Sponsor: Joint Committee on Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure
- Cosponsors: 3
- Subjects: Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure, House Steering, Policy and Scheduling
- Touches household money: yes
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 1

## Summary

No summary available.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- Arlington vote on two new take-home alcohol licenses: benefit, low. The law lets Arlington’s Select Board put a question on the 2026 town ballot. The question asks voters to allow two more licenses to sell alcohol to take home (not for on-site drinking). If a majority votes yes, the Select Board may issue those two licenses. Usual state licensing rules still apply.…

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Joint Committee on Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure
- Cosponsor: Cindy F. Friedman (Democratic), Senate
- Cosponsor: David M. Rogers (Democratic), House
- Cosponsor: Sean Garballey (Democratic), House

## Actions (14)

- 2026-02-19: Signed by the Governor, Chapter 28 of the Acts of 2026
- 2026-02-17: Enacted and laid before the Governor (Senate)
- 2026-02-17: Enacted (House)
- 2026-02-17: Read third and passed to be engrossed (Senate)
- 2026-02-17: Taken out of the Orders of the Day (Senate)
- 2026-02-12: Read second and ordered to a third reading (Senate)
- 2026-01-15: Read; and placed in the Orders of the Day for the next session (Senate)
- 2026-01-12: Read third and passed to be engrossed (House)
- 2025-12-24: Read second and ordered to a third reading (House)
- 2025-12-24: Rules suspended (House)
- 2025-12-24: Committee reported that the matter be placed in the Orders of the Day for the next sitting (House)
- 2025-12-08: Bill reported favorably by committee and referred to the committee on House Steering, Policy and Scheduling (House)
- 2025-12-08: New draft of H4473 (House)
- 2025-12-08: Reported from the committee on Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure (House)

## Bill text

- Chapter 28 of the Acts of 2026, 2026-02-19: [PDF](https://malegislature.gov/Bills/194/H4815.pdf)

## Related bills

- H 4585: An Act authorizing the town of Auburn to offer expanded senior property tax abatements (signed)
- H 5435: An Act authorizing the town of Topsfield to continue to employment of police chief Neal Hovey (passed senate)
- 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 4755: An Act amending the means tested senior citizen property tax exemption in the town of Sudbury (signed)
- H 3909: An Act authorizing the Provincetown year-round market rate rental housing trust to acquire year-round housing occupancy restrictions (signed)
- H 5429: An Act providing injured on duty compensation to Chelmsford firefighter Nicholas Spinale (second reading)

## Sources
- [Chapter 28 of the Acts of 2026 (PDF)](https://malegislature.gov/Bills/194/H4815.pdf)

## Related
- [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 5435: An Act authorizing the town of Topsfield to continue to employment of police ch…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-H5435-194)
- [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 4755: An Act amending the means tested senior citizen property tax exemption in the t…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-H4755-194)
- [H 3909: An Act authorizing the Provincetown year-round market rate rental housing trust…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-H3909-194)
- [H 5429: An Act providing injured on duty compensation to Chelmsford firefighter Nichola…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-H5429-194)
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Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-H4815-194 (as of 2026-11-01).