Bill
H 3422
Imposes a five-year statewide moratorium on studying, designing, building, or expanding jails/prisons; allows only non-bed maintenance, plus a 30-bed county transfer exception.
Status and sponsors
- Bill number: H 3422 (House Docket No. 523). Introduced January 14, 2025; filed/prefiled December 5, 2024. Primary sponsor: Rep. Chynah Tyler. Cosponsors include Lindsay Sabadosa, Patrick Kearney, Joanne Comerford, James Arena-DeRosa, Samantha Montaño, Erika Uyterhoeven, Mike Connolly, Marjorie Decker, and Steven Owens.
- Committee activity (selected): Referred to Committee on Judiciary (01/14/2025 and earlier); referred to State Administration & Regulatory Oversight (02/27/2025); hearing held 05/13/2025; reported favorably by committee and referred to House Ways & Means (10/30/2025). The bill is introduced as an emergency act.
Purpose and intent
- Establish a statewide moratorium (immediate and temporary) on studying, planning, designing, acquiring, siting, constructing, expanding, converting for detention use, or materially renovating correctional facilities and detention centers — with limited, defined maintenance exceptions — to halt jail/prison capacity growth and related projects for a fixed period.
Key provisions
- Adds Section 73 to chapter 7C of the Massachusetts General Laws (definition cross‑references: “correctional facility” per chapter 125, §1).
- Prohibitions (state and public agencies):
- No studying, planning, design, acquisition, leasing, site searches, or construction of new correctional facilities or detention centers.
- No expansion of an existing facility’s capacity beyond its current design or rated capacity.
- No conversion of parts of existing or dormant facilities for detention/incarceration or to change/expand incarcerated populations.
- No renovations beyond routine maintenance except for limited improvements necessary to comply with federal/state law or to improve living conditions — and such improvements may not increase bed capacity.
- No repairs intended to expand a facility or increase bed capacity.
- Limited exception for county jails: if a county jail and regional lockup facility is closed, the county sheriff may transfer up to 30 beds from the closed facility into an existing county correctional facility within the same county (Section 2).
- Emergency clause: declares immediate effect for public safety/health reasons.
Duration / sunset
- Sections repealing the moratorium and the county‑transfer provision (Sections 3 and 4 of the act) are set to take effect five years after the act’s effective date — effectively making the moratorium a five‑year moratorium.
Who is affected
- State and local agencies involved in corrections (Massachusetts Department of Correction, county sheriffs, county governments, municipal partners).
- Contractors, designers, and vendors involved in jail/prison projects.
- Communities and policymakers planning new or expanded detention facilities.
- Incarcerated people and community advocates, since the bill limits increases in bed capacity and allows improvements only to enhance living conditions.
Implementation notes and possible issues
- The bill relies on cross‑references to definitions in chapter 125; administrative guidance may be required to interpret “current design or rated capacity,” “routine maintenance,” and boundaries of allowed improvements.
- The 30‑bed transfer exception applies narrowly to county facilities described as both jails and regional lockups.
- The legislative file also contains unrelated South Carolina statutory language (appears clerical and not part of this Massachusetts bill).
Overall effect
- H.3422 imposes an immediate, statewide five‑year freeze on creating or increasing jail/prison capacity while permitting targeted non‑capacity‑increasing improvements to living conditions and compliance repairs. The measure shifts near‑term policy emphasis away from construction/expansion toward maintenance and alternatives to incarceration.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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