Bill
H 1972
Index Massachusetts judges' pay and pensions to the Northeast CPI, with annual increases starting July 1, 2025, including pension boosts for judges at mandatory retirement age 70.
H.1972, introduced by Rep. Daniel J. Ryan (2nd Suffolk) on February 27, 2025, seeks to adjust compensation for Massachusetts judges and to align judicial pensions with changes in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for Urban Workers in the Northeast Region. The bill would index both annual judicial pay and the pensions of certain judges to CPI starting July 1, 2025 and continuing annually.
Section 1: Amends Section 22 of Chapter 211 to provide that judicial compensation shall be increased at the same rate as the percentage change in the CPI for Urban Workers (Northeast Region) commencing July 1, 2025, and each year thereafter.
Section 2: Amends Section 2 of Chapter 211A to add the same CPI-based adjustment mechanism for compensation, starting July 1, 2025 and continuing annually.
Section 3: Amends Section 4 of Chapter 211B to add the same CPI-based adjustment mechanism for compensation, starting July 1, 2025 and continuing annually.
Section 4: Adds a new Section 65k to Chapter 32 establishing that all justices of the Supreme Judicial Court, Appeals Court, and the trial court departments who have reached the mandatory retirement age (70) shall be entitled to an adjustment to their annual pension. The pension adjustment would increase at the same CPI rate described above, commencing July 1, 2025 and continuing annually.
Primary recipients: Members of the Massachusetts judiciary covered by Chapters 211, 211A, 211B (including pay scales for the Supreme Judicial Court, Appeals Court, and trial court departments).
Pension beneficiaries: Justices who have reached the mandatory retirement age of 70, and their pension benefits.
Indirectly, state budgeting and administrative agencies that implement, monitor, and fund judicial compensation and pensions.
Introduction: February 27, 2025.
Legislative action: Referred to the Judiciary Committee on February 27, 2025. The Senate reportedly concurred the same day.
Hearing: Scheduled for November 4, 2025, with multiple updates to hearing times. The hearing notice indicates both in-person (A-1) and virtual formats, with revised end times.
Related action: House Bill HD 3875 is the related version (listed as replacing).
Next steps: If advanced, the bill would proceed through committee hearings, potential amendments, and floor votes in both chambers.
The bill explicitly ties compensation adjustments to the Northeast Urban Workers CPI, with increases effective July 1 each year beginning in 2025.
The new pension adjustment (Section 65k) aligns retiree benefits with the same CPI measure, extending the indexing mechanism to retirement benefits for long-serving judges.
H.1972 would standardize annual, CPI-based increases for judicial pay and for eligible judges’ pensions, starting in mid-2025. The measure aims to maintain purchasing power for judges and retirees in line with regional price changes, subject to the legislative process and annual appropriation considerations.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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