An Act relative to a cemetery in the town of Norton

194th Legislature (2025-2026) Introduced by Paul Feeney and 1 co-sponsor

Authorizes Norton to pay a $34,001 unpaid bill to Ryan Asphalt Paving for Timothy Plains Cemetery driveway work, despite procurement-bidding noncompliance, as a one-time remedy.

Signed by the Governor, Chapter 50 of the Acts of 2025

Summary: H.4348 — An Act relative to a cemetery in the town of Norton (Chapter 50, Acts of 2025)

What the bill does

The bill authorizes the Town of Norton to pay an unpaid bill of $34,001 to Ryan Asphalt Paving, LLC for driveway pavement work performed at the Timothy Plains Cemetery.

The payment is allowed notwithstanding the town’s failure to comply with procurement and competitive bidding laws in awarding the contracts for the work.

The act takes effect upon the Governor’s passage.

Purpose and intent

The primary purpose is to provide a legislative remedy to satisfy an outstanding debt owed to a contractor for cemetery-related infrastructure work.

It excludes a broad change to procurement rules, limiting the authorization to a single, specific unpaid bill and retroactive approval of payment to prevent disruption of Cemetery infrastructure projects.

Key provisions

Section 1: The Norton treasurer may pay from sums appropriated the unpaid bill of $34,001 to Ryan Asphalt Paving, LLC for driveway pavement work at the Timothy Plains Cemetery, despite noncompliance with procurement and competitive bidding laws.

Section 2: The act takes effect upon passage.

Who is affected

Town of Norton (local government)

Norton Treasurer (authorized official)

Timothy Plains Cemetery (site of the work)

Ryan Asphalt Paving, LLC (contractor/vendor)

Financial and operational impact

Financial: The town’s appropriated funds would be used to settle a $34,001 bill to the contractor.

Procedural: The bill creates a narrow exception to otherwise applicable procurement laws for this specific debt, enabling payment to the contractor after work has been completed.

Legislative and timing overview

Introduced: July 28, 2025; Filed: July 24, 2025; Referred to the Committee on Municipalities and Regional Government.

Hearings and committee actions: Hearing scheduled August 14, 2025; committee reported favorably September 8, 2025.

Floor actions: Senate concurrence July 31, 2025; passed to engrossment and further proceedings in October 2025.

Final status: Signed by the Governor on October 30, 2025; Chapter 50 of the Acts of 2025.

Local approval: The bill was presented as a local approval measure (unpaid bill payment) with accompanying petition from Norton officials.

Context and notes

This is a targeted, local act addressing a single unpaid invoice for cemetery-related paving work.

It does not establish broad changes to procurement laws; it provides a one-time authorization to settle a specific debt.