# Massachusetts H 5511: An Act relative to teacher preparation and student literacy Massachusetts H 5511, An Act relative to teacher preparation and student literacy, is a 194th General Court (2025-2026) House bill sponsored by Teacher Preparation and Student Literacy; status signed, last action 2026-06-26 (Signed by the Governor, Chapter 113 of the Acts of 2026); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-11-01). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-H5511-194 - 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 5511 - State: Massachusetts - Session: 194th General Court (2025-2026) - Title: An Act relative to teacher preparation and student literacy - Status: signed - Chamber: House - Introduced: 2026-06-17 - Last action: 2026-06-26, Signed by the Governor, Chapter 113 of the Acts of 2026 - Sponsor: Teacher Preparation and Student Literacy - Cosponsors: 12 - Subjects: House Steering, Policy and Scheduling - Touches household money: yes - Roll calls: 1 (153 yes, 0 no in all) - Economic provisions PRIA read: 7 ## Summary No summary available. ## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read - Paid apprenticeships help future teachers train: benefit, medium. Subject to an appropriation, the state must create a teacher-apprenticeship pilot with an approved teacher-preparation program. Participants train in high-needs district classrooms with highly proficient mentor teachers. The pilot supports a competitive wage and core expenses, such as childcare, tr… - Reading checks and help for children: benefit, medium. Districts must check every student’s reading progress at least twice each school year, from kindergarten through at least grade 3. They must use current state-approved tests, with rules that account for English learners and define significantly below-grade-level results. When results meet that thre… - New literacy grants help school districts: benefit, medium. The law creates an Early Literacy Fund run by the Secretary of Education, with no set dollar amount. Appropriations, gifts, grants, donations, and interest support the fund; unused money carries forward. Money can be spent without another appropriation on the free curriculum, implementation, and di… - Schools must use proven reading curricula: benefit, medium. Massachusetts districts must adopt an approved kindergarten-through-grade-3 reading curriculum or get a waiver before the 2027-2028 school year. Curricula must meet state standards and cover five research-based reading areas plus oral language. They cannot rely on implicit instruction, whole-word m… - Free reading materials and teacher training: benefit, low. The state must develop, maintain, and offer districts a free, complete kindergarten-through-grade-3 curriculum that meets state standards. It must be available before the 2027-2028 school year. Within six months after passage, the state must list high-quality curricula and notify districts about th… - Teacher preparation must follow reading research: benefit, low. Teacher-preparation and certification rules must align with evidence-based reading instruction. Candidates must demonstrate competence and complete state-approved programs. State reviews assess preparation in five research-based reading areas, candidate quality and outcomes, and efforts to reduce a… - Teacher-training providers pay application review fees: cost, low. Institutions must pay a fee for each application to review and approve a teacher-preparation program. The Secretary of Administration and Finance sets the fee each year to cover review and approval costs. The law gives no fee amount and does not directly charge students or households. ## Sponsors and cosponsors - Sponsor: Teacher Preparation and Student Literacy - Cosponsor: Alice Hanlon Peisch (Democratic), House - Cosponsor: Andres X. Vargas (Democratic), House - Cosponsor: Bud L. Williams (Democratic), House - Cosponsor: Danillo A. Sena (Democratic), House - Cosponsor: Estela A. Reyes (Democratic), House - Cosponsor: Justin Thurber (Republican), House - Cosponsor: Margaret R. Scarsdale (Democratic), House - Cosponsor: Mary S. Keefe (Democratic), House - Cosponsor: Michael O. Moore (Democratic), Senate - Cosponsor: Patricia A. Duffy (Democratic), House - Cosponsor: Patrick Joseph Kearney (Democratic), House - Cosponsor: Simon Cataldo (Democratic), House ## Roll call votes | Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 2026-06-17 | House | Committee of conference report accepted | pass | 153 | 0 | | ## Actions (11) - 2026-06-26: Signed by the Governor, Chapter 113 of the Acts of 2026 - 2026-06-18: Laid before the Governor (Senate) - 2026-06-18: Enacted -see Roll Call #195 (Yeas 39 to Nays 0) (Senate) - 2026-06-18: Enacted (House) - 2026-06-18: Committee of conference report accepted, in concurrence (Senate) - 2026-06-17: Committee of conference report accepted - 153 YEAS to 0 NAYS (See YEA and NAY No. 217) (House) - 2026-06-17: Rules suspended (House) - 2026-06-17: Committee reported that the matter be placed in the Orders of the Day for the next sitting, the question being on acceptance (House) - 2026-06-17: Referred to the committee on House Steering, Policy and Scheduling (House) - 2026-06-17: Reported on H4683 (House) - 2026-06-17: Reported from the committee of conference (House) ## Bill text - Chapter 113 of the Acts of 2026, 2026-06-26: [PDF](https://malegislature.gov/Bills/194/H5511.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 4755: An Act amending the means tested senior citizen property tax exemption in the town of Sudbury (signed) ## Sources - [Chapter 113 of the Acts of 2026 (PDF)](https://malegislature.gov/Bills/194/H5511.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 4755: An Act amending the means tested senior citizen property tax exemption in the t…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-H4755-194) - [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-H5511-194 (as of 2026-11-01).