Determining legislative intent in Massachusetts can be a difficult task. Few successful bills make it to the Governor’s desk accompanied by detailed reports. When there is a report about the need for the new legislation it is usually appended to the original bill that becomes part of the Legislative Documents series.
Tracing Legislative History
(1) Find the section of the Massachusetts General Laws that you wish to research.
(2) Following that section in the annotated laws (ALM or MGLA)
You’ll find historical notes with references to chapters in the Massachusetts Acts & Resolves (cited as “St.”)
These citations are to original enactments or amendments to that section over the years.
| TRACING LEGISLATIVE HISTORY | Resources/Location | Library/Call Number |
|---|---|---|
|
Acts & Resolves of Massachusetts |
5th Floor States Also on Microfiche on the 4th Floor
|
(3) Early Official Codifications & Compilations
| Early Official Codifications & Compilations | Resources/Location | Library/Call Number |
|---|---|---|
|
Colonial Laws of Massachusetts (Cited C.L,) |
1st Floor Non-core |
|
|
Revised Statutes of 1836 (Cited R.S.) |
1st Floor Non-core |
|
|
General Statutes of 1860 (Cited G.S.) |
1st Floor Non-core |
|
|
Public Statutes of 1882 (Cited P.S.) |
1st Floor Non-core | |
|
Revised Laws of 1902 (Cited R. L.) |
1st Floor Non-core | |
|
General Laws of 1921 (Cited G.L.) |
1st Floor Non-core | |
|
General Laws, Tercentenary Edition (1932) |
1st Floor Non-core |
(4) To convert the Chapter number back to the original Bill number
You can use the table found at the back of the annual Bulletin of Committee Work. The Bulletin is located at the end of each year’s Legislative Documents, or for the years after 1973 consult the tables in:
| Bulletin of Committee Work | Resources/Location | Library/Call Number |
|---|---|---|
|
Acts Approved by the Governor 1967 -1973 |
MICROFORMS |
|
|
Guide to Massachusetts General and Special Acts |
Not Applicable | Not Applicable |
|
1974 - 1984 |
MICROFORMS |
|
|
1985 - 2008 |
5th Floor States |
(5) Submitted Bills and the Journals of the House and Senate comprise the Legislative Documents.
Bill texts for years prior to 1945 are located at the State Library of Massachusetts, State House, 3d floor
| Bills and the Journals of the House and Senate | Resources/Location | Library/Call Number |
|---|---|---|
|
House |
Not Applicable | |
|
Senate |
Not Applicable |
(6) For summaries of legislative proceedings
See the Journals of the House and Senate Bills (Legislative Documents) and House and Senate Journals
| summaries of legislative proceedings | Resources/Location | Library/Call Number |
|---|---|---|
|
1715 - 1779 |
5th Floor States |
|
|
1867 - |
5th Floor States |
(7) For reports issued by the General Court on specific topics see
| reports issued by the General Court | Resources/Location | Library/Call Number |
|---|---|---|
|
Index of Special; Reports Authorized by the General Court 1900-1988 with Supplement 1988-1994 |
5th Floor States |
More Sources for Legislative History
| More Sources for Legislative History | Resources/Location |
|---|---|
|
1. The SPONSOR of the bill might provide information about the legislation. For contact information about Massachusetts legislators see: The Massachusetts Political Almanac |
1st Floor Online issues. In-Library use only. Log-on by Reference Librarian required |
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2. The STATE ARCHIVES has “Legislative Packages” for bill introduced since 1775. |
220 Morrissey Blvd. Boston Provide the bill number and year. Current legislative packages are with the House and Senate Clerk’s office, State House |
|
3. For further information regarding debates, proceedings, committee hearings and news release consult the STATE LIBRARY: |
State House, Room 341 |
The Massachusetts General Court offers bill tracking of current legislation through its home page.
The State Library has old Massachusetts Acts & Resolves in searchable pdf format from 1692 through 2008.
Acts and Resolves from 1997-current can be found on the General Court's session laws page.
Available for in-Library use, includes bill texts and tracking, roll call votes and a wealth of other information about bills and laws since the 1995-1996 legislative session. INSTATRAC is available on all computer terminals for in-Library use.
Provides daily and archived coverage of the Massachusetts House and Senate sessions since 1986. Materials include articles, profiles, summaries, forecasts, and background information on virtually every aspect of Massachusetts government, politics and regulatory affairs. State House News Services is available for in-Library use.
The printed volumes of the official version of the Acts and Resolves from 1692 to 2010 are digitized and available online in the State Library's digital repository. An unofficial version of the Session Laws from 1997 to the present can be found on the Massachusetts General Court’s website.
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