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H 3867

Annuity Contracts for Employees of Schools and Educational Institutions

2025-2026 Regular Session Introduced by David Martin and 2 co-sponsors

Massachusetts boosts disabled veterans’ annuity from $2,000 to $5,000 under Chapter 115 §6B.

Referred to Committee on Education and Public Works
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WeVote Research Nonpartisan
Bill Summary · H 3867

Bill Summary — H 3867

Status: Referred to committee; hearing scheduled 10/28/2025
Primary sponsor: Rep. Marc T. Lombardo

Note on source material: The text provided appears to include two different statutory amendments from different states. One section (filed as House Docket No. 266 / H.3867) amends Massachusetts General Laws to increase a disabled veterans’ annuity. A separate section amends South Carolina Code Section 9-15-10 to set vendor and investment-option requirements for 403(b) annuity contracts for school districts and state-supported institutions. This summary describes both measures and flags the jurisdictional inconsistency — please confirm which version is the bill of interest.

Purpose / Intent

  • Massachusetts portion: Increase the statutory annuity available to disabled veterans and their families.
  • South Carolina portion: Require that 403(b) contracts offered through school districts and state-supported higher-education institutions include low-cost investment options and limit certain fees and charges to reduce costs for employees saving through salary reduction agreements.

Key provisions

Massachusetts (amendment to chapter 115, §6B)

  • Replaces each instance of “$2,000” with “$5,000” (three textual insertions noted).
  • Effect: Raises the referenced annuity amount from $2,000 to $5,000 for disabled veterans/families under Section 6B.

South Carolina (amendment to S.C. Code §9-15-10)

  • Authorizes school districts and state-supported institutions to enter 403(b) contracts in accordance with federal tax code limits.
  • New vendor/contract requirements for contracts entered on/after July 1, 2026:
    • Administrative asset-based fees must not exceed 0.5%.
    • No front-end sales or advisory charges.
    • No surrender charges.
    • Contracts must offer access to the following fund types with specified maximum expense ratios:
    • Target-based index fund — expense ratio ≤ 0.25%
    • Broad-based domestic index fund — expense ratio ≤ 0.10%
    • Broad-based bond index fund — expense ratio ≤ 0.10%
    • International index fund — expense ratio ≤ 0.10%
    • Vendors must provide employees a one-page summary of all administrative fees.
  • Grandfathering: If a district/institution has a vendor contract that does not meet these requirements before July 1, 2026, participants already contributing under salary-reduction agreements may continue contributions under the existing contract terms.
  • Effective date: July 1, 2026.

Who is affected

  • Massachusetts measure: Disabled veterans and their dependents eligible under chapter 115 §6B; state budget/treasury (increased benefit payments).
  • South Carolina measure: Public K–12 school districts and state-supported higher-education institutions, their employees who participate in 403(b) plans, and 403(b) vendors/recordkeepers (may need to alter fee structures and fund lineups).

Potential impacts

  • Massachusetts: Direct increase in per-recipient annuity (from $2,000 to $5,000) will raise state benefit expenditures; the aggregate fiscal impact depends on the number of eligible recipients (not specified in text).
  • South Carolina: Likely reduces costs for employees’ retirement savings (lower fees, expanded low-cost index options). Vendors may need to renegotiate contracts or exit markets where requirements are not met. Short-term administrative/transition costs for districts and institutions; protections provided for existing contracts through July 1, 2026.

Legislative/Procedural notes and timeline

  • Introduced/read first time Jan 30, 2025 (filed 1/7/2025 in provided docket).
  • Referred to Committee on Education and Public Works (and also to Veterans and Federal Affairs in some entries) on/around Jan–Feb 2025.
  • Senate concurred (entry dated 2/27/2025 — check procedural context).
  • Hearing scheduled (or rescheduled) for Oct 28, 2025 (times noted: 01:00–01:10 PM and other listings).
  • South Carolina text specifies effective date: July 1, 2026.

If you want, I can:
- Produce a short fiscal-impact checklist estimating budgetary effects, or
- Extract a one-page plain-language explainer focused only on the Massachusetts or only on the South Carolina provisions.

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

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