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H 2973

An Act relating to fair compensation for bilingual police officers

194th Legislature (2025-2026) Introduced by Priscila Sousa

Massachusetts bill would create a Language Proficiency Pay program to compensate bilingual police officers; towns would receive 50% reimbursement from the state, overseen by MPTC.

Accompanied a study order, see H5312 (under House Rule 27)
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Bill Summary · H 2973

Summary: H.2973 — An Act relating to fair compensation for bilingual police officers

Overview

H.2973, introduced February 27, 2025, seeks to recognize and compensate police officers who speak languages in addition to English that are spoken in the communities they serve. The bill would add a new language proficiency pay program to Chapter 41 of the General Laws and establish state-supported reimbursement for municipalities that offer such incentives.

Purpose and Intent

  • Aims to provide monetary compensation to regular full-time police officers who demonstrate linguistic proficiency in languages spoken in their jurisdictions.
  • Encourages departments to recruit and retain bilingual officers by offering financial incentives tied to language skills.
  • Creates state oversight and quality standards for language proficiency pay programs.

Key Provisions

  • Amend Chapter 41 by inserting new Section 108MMMM: Language Proficiency Pay Program.
  • Eligible recipients: Regular, full-time officers in city or town police departments who speak one or more non-English languages spoken in their communities.
  • Forms of compensation: Stipends, salary increases, or other monetary incentives.
  • Basis for incentives: Determined by the officer’s language proficiency relative to languages used in the department’s municipality; proficiency criteria may include:
    • Minimum school requirements of the applicable World Language Assessment Instrument used for the Massachusetts State Seal of Biliteracy, or a comparable metric.
    • Satisfaction with proficiency to be determined by the chief of police (or equivalent rank).
  • Administrative discretion: The decision to grant incentives lies with the local municipal administration.
  • Reimbursement to municipalities: If a city or town adopts these provisions and provides career incentive increases, the Commonwealth reimburses half the cost of payments.
    • Reimbursement certified by the Municipal Police Training Committee (MPTC).
    • Annual certification process: Information filed by September 1 each year using a form provided by the MPTC, completed by the chief of police.
  • Oversight: The MPTC will establish quality guidelines, standards, and review processes for the program.

Administration and Oversight

  • Municipal Police Training Committee (MPTC) responsible for:
    • Certifying reimbursement amounts to municipalities.
    • Establishing quality guidelines and review processes for the program.
    • Receiving annual reports/forms used to determine reimbursement.

Fiscal and Implementation Considerations

  • Fiscal mechanism: Commonwealth funds half of the language-incentive costs borne by municipalities, via annual reimbursement.
  • Timing: The bill specifies annual reporting deadlines (September 1) for reimbursement determination; no explicit effective date is stated in the text provided.
  • Administrative burden: Municipalities must administer language proficiency incentives and submit required documentation to receive reimbursement.

Affected Parties

  • Police officers who are bilingual and meet proficiency criteria.
  • City and town police departments and their administrations.
  • Municipalities implementing the program.
  • Massachusetts Municipal Police Training Committee (oversight and certification role).

Procedural History

  • Introduced and referred to the Committee on Public Service (February 27, 2025).
  • Senate concurrence noted on February 27, 2025.
  • Hearing: Originally scheduled; rescheduled for September 17, 2025 (1:00 PM–2:00 PM; later updated with new end time; in-person and virtual options available).

Related Bills

  • HD 1671 (replaces) is listed as related to this measure, reflecting parallel or subsequent drafting activity.

This bill would significantly affect how municipalities structure compensation for bilingual officers and how the Commonwealth supports local language-proficiency incentives.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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