Chapter 3

Section 12A. Facsimiles of the signatures of the clerk of the senate and the clerk of the house of representatives on endorsements of bills, reports of committees and other legislative documents shall have the same validity and effect as their written signatures.

Section 12B. The clerks of the 2 branches shall in every odd-numbered year prepare a manual for the general court. Such number of copies of the manual as the committees on rules shall determine shall be printed under the direction of the clerks of the 2 branches.

Section 13. The clerks of the senate and house of representatives, subject to the approval of the senate and house, respectively, may each appoint an assistant clerk and a second assistant clerk, who shall receive such salaries as may be established by the committee on rules of t…

Section 14. The chaplain of the house of representatives shall receive such salary as may be established by the committee on rules of the house of representatives, as the case may be.

Section 15. The general court shall choose a sergeant-at-arms who shall hold office until removed or until another is chosen. The sergeant-at-arms may be removed by the general court. The sergeant-at-arms shall receive such salary as may be established by the committees on rules …

Section 16. In case of the disability or necessary absence of the sergeant-at-arms of the general court and of the sergeant-at-arms of the house of representatives, the sergeant-at-arms may appoint, with the approval of the presiding officers of the 2 branches of the general cour…

Section 17. The sergeant-at-arms shall serve such processes and execute such orders as may be enjoined upon him by the general court or by either branch thereof, attend the members or clerks of either branch when they are charged with a message from one branch to the other or to …

Section 18. There shall be 2 chief general court officers for each branch, each with the title of assistant sergeant-at-arms, and such assistant chief general court officers, general court officers and pages as shall be established by the committees on rules of the 2 branches of …

Section 19. The number of chief general court officers, assistant chief general court officers, general court officers and pages of the senate and of the house shall not exceed 92 in all.

Section 2. The persons named on the lists delivered to the sergeant-at-arms shall be admitted to take seats as members in the representatives' chamber on said first Wednesday of January or thereafter during the terms for which they are elected.

Section 20A. Subject to appropriation, the sergeant-at-arms may purchase uniforms for the sergeant-at-arms, general court officers and pages as the sergeant-at-arms may determine.

Section 21. The sergeant-at-arms shall, immediately after his election, with the approval of the presiding officers of the two branches of the general court, appoint such employees as are necessary to fill any existing vacancies in the employees provided for by section eighteen; …

Section 22. The journals, files and papers of the senate and of the house of representatives shall be in the custody of their respective clerks during the session to which they relate and after that session they shall be in the custody of the state secretary. The clerk of each br…

Section 22A. Such number of copies of the journals of the senate and of the house of representatives as the committees on rules shall determine shall be printed annually under the direction of the clerks of the 2 branches.

Section 23. Bills and resolves passed to be engrossed by the general court, and bills for which initiative petitions are completed under the constitution of the commonwealth, shall, under the direction of the committees on rules of the 2 branches, acting concurrently, be fairly e…

Section 24. All proposed amendments to the constitution which have been agreed to in joint session of the two houses of the general court in the manner prescribed by the constitution shall be engrossed on parchment or parchment paper, certified by the clerk of such joint session,…

Section 26. No periodicals, publications or books, other than those printed for the use of the general court, shall be ordered for members thereof at the expense of the commonwealth.

Section 27. Senators and representatives, acting as members of a committee of the general court, may administer oaths to persons examined before such committee.

Section 28. A person shall not be excused from attending and testifying before either branch of the general court or before a committee thereof upon a subject referred to such committee on the ground that his testimony or evidence, documentary or otherwise, may tend to criminate …

Section 28A. Any person who, having been summoned as a witness to give testimony or produce papers, by the authority of either branch of the general court, or both jointly, or under any provision of law, upon any matter under inquiry before either branch, or before any committee …

Section 29. Stenographic reports of hearings before legislative committees or special commissions made at the expense of the commonwealth shall, at the conclusion of the work of such committees or commissions, be deposited in the state library.

Section 3. On said first Wednesday of January, between the hours of ten in the forenoon and twelve at noon, the persons so returned and admitted as members into the representatives' chamber shall be called to order by the oldest senior member present, who shall be the presiding o…

Section 30. Accounts for expenditures made or services rendered under an order of the general court or of either branch thereof, other than by legislative committees, may be approved by the president or speaker, by the sergeant-at-arms, or by any other person to whose direction o…

Section 31. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, no joint committee of the general court shall, unless authorized by order or rule of both branches, incur any expense to be paid by the commonwealth; and no committee of either branch shall, unless authorized by order or r…

Section 32. No committee of the general court shall, after the close of the regular session, incur any expense to be paid by the commonwealth unless there is an authorized appropriation therefor.

Section 32A. No special commission, no special or standing committee of the general court or of either branch of the general court and no sub-committee of any such commission or committee shall travel either within or without the commonwealth except by a vote of a majority of the…

Section 33. The committees on rules of the 2 branches, acting concurrently, shall publish electronically during each regular session of the general court bulletins of committee hearings.

Section 35. Advertisements of hearings of legislative committees shall be published on the official website of the general court and may be published in additional publications if the chairs of the committee determine that additional publication is necessary to reach those with a…

Section 38A. Joint committees of the general court, the house and senate committees on ways and means and the house and senate committees on bonding, capital expenditures and state assets when reporting favorably on bills referred to them shall include with that report a fiscal n…

Section 38B. The committee on ways and means of each branch of the general court shall conduct public hearings on all requests and recommendations for appropriations for the executive, judicial and legislative branches of the state government submitted under section 2 of Article …

Section 38C. (a) For the purposes of this section, a mandated health benefit proposal is one that mandates health insurance coverage for specific health services, specific diseases or certain providers of health care services as part of a policy or policies of group life and acci…

Section 39. As used in sections thirty-nine to fifty, inclusive, the following words shall, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, have the following meanings:— ''Act to communicate directly with a covered executive official to influence a decision concerning policy or p…

Section 4. A person having a certificate or other documentary evidence of his election as a representative who is not named on said lists may, after the house has been called to order, present such certificate or evidence to the presiding officer, or to the speaker if one has bee…

Section 41. The state secretary shall keep a docket which may be in the form of an electronic database. All information required to be filed under this section shall be organized into the docket and shall be open and accessible for public inspection during normal business hours. …

Section 42. No person shall make any agreement whereby any compensation or thing of value is to be paid to any person contingent upon a decision as described in the definition of ''executive lobbying'', or the passage or defeat of any legislation or the approval or veto of any le…

Section 43. On or before the fifteenth day of July, complete from January first through June thirtieth; and the fifteenth day of January, complete from July first to December thirty-first of the preceding year, every executive and legislative agent shall render to the state secre…

Section 44. On or before the fifteenth day of July, complete from January first through June thirtieth; and the fifteenth day of January, complete from July first to December thirty-first of the preceding year, any group or organization, however constituted, not employing an exec…

Section 45. (a) Upon receipt of a sworn complaint signed under pains and penalties of perjury, or upon receipt of evidence which is deemed sufficient by the state secretary, the state secretary shall initiate a preliminary inquiry into any alleged violation of sections 39 to 50, …

Section 46. The docket of executive and legislative agents shall be maintained for each legislative year, beginning on the first Wednesday of January and ending at the conclusion of business on the final day before the succeeding legislative session.

Section 47. On or before the fifteenth day of July, complete from January first through June thirtieth; and the fifteenth day of January, complete from July first to December thirty-first of the preceding year, every employer of an executive or legislative agent shall render to t…

Section 48. Violation of any provision of sections forty, forty-one, forty-two, forty-three and forty-four, or forty-seven shall be punished by a fine of not less than one hundred, nor more than $10,000, or by imprisonment in the state prison for not more than 5 years, or in a ja…

Section 49. The supreme judicial court or superior court may compel any person, group, or organization failing to file a statement required by sections forty-three, forty-four or forty-seven, or filing a statement not conforming to the requirements of said sections in respect to …

Section 5. Any petition to the general court for the incorporation of a city or town, for the annexation of one municipality to another, for the consolidation of two or more municipalities or for the division of an existing municipality, or for the incorporation or revival of a r…

Section 50. Sections thirty-nine to forty-nine, inclusive, shall not apply to employees or agents of the commonwealth or of a city, town, district or regional school district who are acting in their capacity as such employees or agents or to any person requested to appear before …

Section 51. The committees on rules of the senate and house of representatives shall each appoint a skilled person to act as counsel to the senate and house of representatives, respectively, at such compensation as the said committees may approve. The persons so appointed shall s…

Section 52. The said counsel shall, under like direction, assist members and committees of the senate and house of representatives in drafting bills, and shall advise and assist the committees on bills in the third reading. They shall, so far as possible, draft all bills proposed…