BOSTON (WWLP) – Massachusetts lawmakers are looking to tighten rules surrounding disclosure of funding for ballot questions, with a plethora of potential questions still on the table for next November.
Electoral officials are still parsing through almost 150 boxes of voter signatures submitted last month in support of 12 ballot questions, ranging from rent control to rescinding recreational marijuana legalization to tax policy.
Massachusetts receives $162 million in federal rural health care aid
Across the last 50 years, the average number of questions on the Bay State ballot is between 2 and 4. With 3-6 times as many questions still on the table for 2026, lawmakers are raising concerns about whether these questions represent the will of voters or just the will of well-funded interest groups.
The Joint Committee on Election Laws recommended two bills that would require more funding disclosure. One bill, the Ballot Transparency Act, expands on how and when ballot campaigns must file reports with the Office of Campaign and Political Finance and clearly defines non-cash political support, which previously went under the radar…