WeVote
Log In

Bill

Bill

H 3162

Commission on Hearing Aid Specialists

2025-2026 Regular Session Introduced by Mark Smith

Extends Massachusetts' blind-person property tax exemption to the surviving spouse, continuing until remarriage.

Referred to Committee on Labor, Commerce and Industry
0
WeVote Research Nonpartisan
Bill Summary · H 3162

Summary — H 3162 ("Commission on Hearing Aid Specialists" / property tax exemption for surviving spouses of blind persons)

Note up front: the file you provided contains two different bill texts from different jurisdictions. One is a Massachusetts House bill (House No. 3162 / Docket 1634) that would extend a Massachusetts property tax exemption to the surviving spouse of a blind person. The other is a South Carolina statutory cleanup amending Section 40‑25‑40(C) (Commission of Hearing Aid Specialists) to correct an archaic reference. This summary focuses on the Massachusetts House bill H 3162 (the bill captioned “An Act extending a property tax exemption to the surviving spouse of blind persons”), and also notes the unrelated South Carolina text at the end.

Massachusetts bill (primary text in the file)

  • Bill number / docket: House No. 3162 (House Docket No. 1634)
  • Sponsor: Representative David Paul Linsky (5th Middlesex)
  • Title / purpose: “An Act extending a property tax exemption to the surviving spouse of blind persons.”
  • Filed: January 15, 2025 (prefiled Dec. 5, 2024; introduced Jan. 14, 2025)
  • Status (from provided actions): Referred to Committee on Labor, Commerce and Industry (1/14/2025); later entries show referral to the committee on Revenue (2/27/2025) and various hearings scheduled/cancelled (see timeline below).

Main provision

  • Amends Section 5 of Chapter 59 of the Massachusetts General Laws (as appearing in the 2016 Official Edition) by inserting, after the word “person” (line 957), the phrase: “or the blind person’s surviving spouse until the surviving spouse remarries”
  • Effect: extends the existing real‑estate property tax exemption that currently applies to a blind person (owner/occupant) so that the exemption continues to apply to the blind person’s surviving spouse after the blind person’s death, and remains in effect until the surviving spouse remarries.

Who is affected

  • Primary beneficiaries: surviving spouses of persons who qualified for the Massachusetts property tax exemption for blind persons. Such surviving spouses would be eligible to retain that exemption until they remarry.
  • Secondary actors: municipal assessors/tax collectors who administer local property tax exemptions (possible administrative workload for processing applications, verifying eligibility, and tracking remarriage); state/local fiscal offices (potential small revenue impact).

Practical/administrative notes

  • The bill text as provided adds the eligibility language but does not specify application, documentation, or verification procedures; implementing practice would typically follow existing municipal application processes (proof of spouse’s blindness, death certificate, proof of current marital status).
  • Fiscal impact: not specified in the bill. Likely modest and localized — reduced property tax revenues for municipalities to the extent surviving spouses claim the exemption. Exact impact depends on number of eligible surviving spouses and exemption amount.

Procedural timeline (from provided actions)

  • Prefiled: 12/05/2024
  • Introduced / read first time: 01/14/2025; referred to Committee on Labor, Commerce and Industry (same day)
  • 02/27/2025: Referred to committee on Revenue (per provided log); Senate concurred (entry present in log)
  • Hearings: 07/11/2025 hearing scheduled for 07/22/2025 (A‑2) — later canceled 07/14/2025 (new hearing TBD); another hearing scheduled for 11/07/2025 (Gardner Auditorium) from 10:00 AM–2:00 PM.

Unrelated South Carolina text present in file

  • The file also includes a South Carolina bill amending S.C. Code §40‑25‑40(C) (Commission of Hearing Aid Specialists) to remove/correct an archaic reference (e.g., “CommissionDepartment on Aging”), clarify agencies to be invited for recommendations, and confirm appointment/term procedures. That text is a separate measure for South Carolina and is not related to the Massachusetts property tax exemption language.

Recommendation

  • Verify the authoritative bill text and current status on the official legislative website for the relevant jurisdiction (Massachusetts General Court for House No. 3162) because the document merge includes content from two different states. If you want, I can prepare a short fiscal note framework or draft municipal implementation/administrative guidance for the Massachusetts provision.

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

Sign in to ask a question.