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S 2261

Provides that family members of paid professional firefighters who died in the line-of-duty may obtain a "Survivor of the Bravest" license plate

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Jeremy Cooney and 4 co-sponsors

Creates the Green Infrastructure Fund to finance decarbonization in Massachusetts (transit, housing, energy, EVs) funded by market proceeds, overseen by an 18-member board.

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WeVote Research Nonpartisan
Bill Summary · S 2261

Summary — S.2261 (2025): "An Act achieving a green future with infrastructure and workforce investments"

Note on discrepancy
- The bill header provided (title about a “Survivor of the Bravest” license plate) does not match the bill text attached. The text filed as Senate Docket No. 2490 / S.2261 is a Massachusetts bill titled “An Act achieving a green future with infrastructure and workforce investments.” This summary covers the actual bill text provided (green infrastructure / environmental justice provisions). Please confirm if you want a summary of the license-plate proposal instead.

Overview / Primary purpose
- Establishes state-level definitions and institutional structures for environmental justice and creates a new Green Infrastructure Fund to finance greenhouse-gas-reducing investments across transportation, housing, energy, workforce development, and related clean-technology programs. The Fund is to be administered by the Secretary of the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs.

Key provisions
1. New definitions added to chapter 25A
- Defines “environmental justice population,” “environmental justice council,” “environmental justice principles,” “revenue commissioner,” “secretary,” and household “quintiles” (Quintile 1 and 2 income limits determined and updated by the Commissioner of Revenue).

  1. Creation of the Green Infrastructure Fund (chapter 25A, new §13A)

    • A separate fund on the Commonwealth’s books administered by the Secretary. Proceeds cannot be used for general government operations except reasonable administrative costs.
    • Funding sources: proceeds from market-based mechanisms established under clause (ii)-(iv) of §7(a) of chapter 21N, deposited into the Fund after required initial distributions (e.g., household green dividend fund, green workforce development and training fund, and the Massachusetts local climate crisis trust fund).
    • Eligible investments include (non-exclusive list): public transit and low-carbon buses/trucks; electric vehicles and charging infrastructure; transit-oriented affordable housing; in-state renewables, battery storage, community microgrids; energy efficiency and electrification for housing, municipal infrastructure, and public schools; clean-tech R&D and commercialization; and targeted investments for rural communities.
    • The bill explicitly lists existing state programs that can be eligible recipients (e.g., Mass Save, Massachusetts Clean Energy Center programs, DPU battery rebate program, offshore wind workforce and port infrastructure supports).

  2. Governance — Green Infrastructure Fund Board

    • Board of 18 members; Secretary serves as Chair.
    • Governor appoints 14 members representing state agencies and stakeholder categories: DOT, DEP, DOER, DHCD, Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, Environmental Justice Council, organized labor, large commercial/industrial business, small business, low-income residents, clean energy industry, youth (≤25), and two regional planning association representatives.
    • Additional members: one public member appointed by the Speaker of the House, one by the Senate President, and one by the State Treasurer.

Who would be affected
- Massachusetts residents broadly, with particular emphasis on:
- Environmental justice populations and low-income households (explicitly recognized via quintile definitions and EJ principles).
- Municipal governments and regional authorities (eligible program administrators and recipients).
- Transit agencies, school districts, public housing authorities, clean-energy developers, energy storage and EV sectors.
- Organized labor and workforce training programs tied to clean-energy and offshore-wind supply chains.
- Businesses (both large and small) engaged in clean-energy services and technology commercialization.

Fiscal and programmatic impacts
- The bill sets up a dedicated funding stream (market-based mechanism proceeds under chapter 21N) to finance decarbonization projects — but it does not specify total dollar amounts (amounts depend on revenue generated by those market mechanisms).
- Funds may accelerate investments in clean transportation, housing electrification, grid/storage capacity, workforce development, and offshore wind readiness. The net fiscal impact to the state budget depends on volumes generated by the underlying market mechanisms and on allocation decisions by the Fund Board.

Procedural / timeline notes
- Docketed as Senate No. 2261 (Senate Docket No. 2490). The bill text is dated filed 01/17/2025 and was presented by Senator William J. Driscoll, Jr. (petitioners also include Joanne M. Comerford and Manny Cruz).
- Legislative action entries provided are inconsistent (multiple committee referrals and dates). The record shows committee referrals (Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy; Environment & Public Works; Transportation), and entries indicating it passed the Senate and was delivered to the House on 5/21/2025; several subsequent referrals to Transportation are listed. The text as provided is truncated after the board and initial deadlines, so some later implementation details may be missing.

Observations / gaps
- The bill text provided is truncated (continues beyond the inserted excerpts); further sections likely define board duties, reporting requirements, allocation procedures, and deadlines (a referenced deadline “No later than January 1st, 2024” is inconsistent with filing dates and may be an editorial remnant).
- No explicit appropriation amounts or specific revenue forecasts are included — actual program scale will depend on proceeds from the chapter 21N market-based mechanisms.

If you want
- I can: (a) produce a one-page brief tailored to municipal or community stakeholders; (b) extract and summarize remaining text if you provide the rest of the file; or (c) draft a plain-language explainer on how chapter 21N market-based mechanisms feed such funds. Which would you prefer?

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

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