# Massachusetts S 2975: An Act protecting access to justice

Massachusetts S 2975, An Act protecting access to justice, is a 194th General Court (2025-2026) Senate bill sponsored by Lydia Edwards (Democratic); status in committee, last action 2026-05-14 (Bill reported favorably by committee and referred to the committee on Senate Ways and Means) (as of 2026-11-01).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-S2975-194
- As of: 2026-11-01
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Massachusetts S 2975
- State: Massachusetts
- Session: 194th General Court (2025-2026)
- Title: An Act protecting access to justice
- Status: in committee
- Chamber: Senate
- Introduced: 2026-01-20
- Last action: 2026-05-14, Bill reported favorably by committee and referred to the committee on Senate Ways and Means
- Sponsor: Lydia Edwards (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 23
- Subjects: Rules of the two branches, acting concurrently, The Judiciary, Senate Ways and Means
- Touches household money: no
- Roll calls: 1 (3 yes, 0 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 0

## Summary

No summary available.

## Bill overview

No economic impacts identified for this bill.

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Lydia Edwards (Democratic), Senate
- Cosponsor: Amy Mah Sangiolo (Democratic), House
- Cosponsor: Christine P. Barber (Democratic), House
- Cosponsor: Danillo A. Sena (Democratic), House
- Cosponsor: James B. Eldridge (Democratic), Senate
- Cosponsor: Joanne M. Comerford (Democratic), Senate
- Cosponsor: John F. Keenan (Democratic), Senate
- Cosponsor: Julian Cyr (Democratic), Senate
- Cosponsor: Liz Miranda (Democratic), Senate
- Cosponsor: Manny Cruz (Democratic), House
- Cosponsor: Marjorie C. Decker (Democratic), House
- Cosponsor: Michael F. Rush (Democratic), Senate
- Cosponsor: Michelle M. DuBois (Democratic), House
- Cosponsor: Mindy Domb (Democratic), House
- Cosponsor: Nick Collins (Democratic), Senate
- Cosponsor: Patricia D. Jehlen (Democratic), Senate
- Cosponsor: Paul W. Mark (Democratic), Senate
- Cosponsor: Pavel M. Payano (Democratic), Senate
- Cosponsor: Rebecca L. Rausch (Democratic), Senate
- Cosponsor: Robyn K. Kennedy (Democratic), Senate
- Cosponsor: Sal N. DiDomenico (Democratic), Senate
- Cosponsor: Thomas W. Moakley (Democratic), House
- Cosponsor: Tram T. Nguyen (Democratic), House
- Cosponsor: William J. Driscoll Jr. (Democratic), Senate

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-04-23 | committee | Committee Favorable: Ought to pass | pass | 3 | 0 | 1 |

## Actions (7)

- 2026-05-14: Bill reported favorably by committee and referred to the committee on Senate Ways and Means (Senate)
- 2026-03-31: Hearing scheduled for 04/07/2026 from 01:00 PM-05:00 PM in A-2 (legislature)
- 2026-03-30: Reporting date extended to Tuesday June 30, 2026 (Senate)
- 2026-02-26: House concurred (House)
- 2026-01-27: Referred to the committee on The Judiciary (Senate)
- 2026-01-27: Rules suspended (Senate)
- 2026-01-20: Referred to the committee on Rules of the two branches, acting concurrently (Senate)

## Bill text

- As Filed: [PDF](https://malegislature.gov/Bills/194/S2975.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 5520: An Act exempting George Patrinos from the maximum age requirement age for the position of firefighter in the town of Dudley (signed)

## Sources
- [As Filed (PDF)](https://malegislature.gov/Bills/194/S2975.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 5520: An Act exempting George Patrinos from the maximum age requirement age for the p…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-H5520-194)
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Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/MA-S2975-194 (as of 2026-11-01).