Requires two qualified psychiatrists to be employed by each school district

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Jamaal Bailey and 1 co-sponsor

Massachusetts bill removes woody biomass from the greenhouse gas standard for municipal lighting plants, ending its acceptance as compliant fuel.

REFERRED TO EDUCATION

Summary — S.2288 (Commonwealth of Massachusetts)

Title in provided text: "An Act to remove woody biomass from the greenhouse gas emissions standard for municipal lighting plants"

Note on inconsistencies: The metadata you supplied (title about requiring two psychiatrists per school district, sponsors listed as U.S. Senators, and multiple committee referrals) conflicts with the bill text and docket information. This summary is based on the bill text and docket included in your submission, which is a Massachusetts Senate bill (Senate No. 2288 / Senate Docket No. 1351) that removes woody biomass from the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions standard for municipal lighting plants. If you intended a different bill, please provide the correct text or clarify.

Main purpose

The bill would remove woody biomass from the legal definition or list of fuel sources that meet the Commonwealth’s greenhouse gas emissions standard for municipal lighting plants by amending state law. Its stated intent is to exclude combustion of woody biomass from being treated as an acceptable/qualifying source under that GHG standard.

Key provisions

Amends Chapter 8 of the Massachusetts General Laws (as appearing in the 2022 Official Edition) by striking out sections 34 and 112.

The bill text is terse; the operative effect is achieved by deleting those sections that currently reference woody biomass within the GHG emissions standard for municipal lighting plants.

Effective date: the act takes effect upon passage.

Likely effect / who would be affected

Municipal lighting plants and municipal utilities: they would no longer be allowed to treat woody biomass-fired generation as compliant with the GHG standard established by the removed statutory sections. This could affect plant operations, fuel procurement, permitting, and eligibility for any statutory benefits tied to compliance.

Woody biomass industry and suppliers: removal may reduce demand from municipal lighting plants in Massachusetts.

Ratepayers and municipal customers: potential indirect impacts on costs if plants must switch fuels, invest in emissions controls, pursue different generation sources, or purchase renewable energy credits to meet obligations.

Environmental/regulatory outcomes: could reduce statutory recognition of biomass as low- or zero-emission for municipal lighting plants, affecting emissions accounting and state climate policy implementation at the municipal level.

Procedural status (as provided)

Filed: 1/16/2025 (Senate docket no. 1351); introduced in 2025-01-16 session text.

Legislative actions listed include multiple referrals (Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy; Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry; Education) and hearings; status shown as REFERRED TO EDUCATION in your header.

Effective upon enactment (immediate).

Notes and recommended next steps

The bill deletes specific sections (8 §34 and §112). To understand precise legal changes and downstream impacts, review the current text of those sections in Chapter 8 to see how they define the GHG standard and the role of woody biomass.

Clarify the correct bill metadata if you need a summary of a different proposal (e.g., the psychiatrist requirement mentioned at the top), or request a comparison between current law and the proposed changes.