Campaigns behind five ballot initiatives in Massachusetts filed a second round of signatures for a spot on the November ballot

Campaigns sponsoring five ballot initiatives filed a second round of signatures with the Massachusetts secretary of state by the July 3 deadline.

Committee to Eliminate Barriers to Student Success for All filed signatures for an initiative to amend Massachusetts state law to repeal the requirement that students must achieve a certain competency level on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) exam to graduate high school. The law would also allow any former Massachusetts high school student who was denied a diploma due to not meeting the competency requirements to request and receive a diploma if they had fulfilled all other local or district requirements. The initiative is sponsored by the Massachusetts Teachers Association.

One Fair Wage Plus Tips MA filed signatures for an initiative that would gradually increase the wage of tipped employees until it meets the state minimum wage in 2029 and still permit tipping in addition to the minimum wage. As of January 2024, the minimum wage for tipped employees in Massachusetts was $6.75 in addition to tips, and the minimum wage for non-tipped employees was $15.00.

Committee for Transparent Democracy, a campaign spearheaded by State Auditor Diana DiZoglio (D), also filed signatures for an initiative to add a new section to state law authorizing the state auditor to audit the accounts, programs, activities, functions of all departments, offices, commissions, institutions, and activities of the state legislature and any authorities or districts created by the state legislature.

Massachusetts for Mental Health Options (MMHO) filed signatures for an initiative that would provide for regulated access to certain psychedelic substances. Emily Oneschuk, a veteran and grassroots outreach director for MMHO, said, “The support from Massachusetts residents has been overwhelming, we are thrilled to be on the ballot this year. Massachusetts veterans have been advocating for this type of care for years, it’s time to make it accessible and affordable for them and other struggling Massachusetts residents.”

United for Justice filed signatures for an initiative that would provide for unionizing and collective bargaining for transportation network drivers. The backers of the initiative include Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and Local 32BJ. The initiative was competing with an Uber and Lyft-backed initiative that would have classified app-based drivers as independent contractors and enacted several labor policies related to app-based companies, but it was withdrawn by sponsors after the companies reached a settlement with the state over the status of app-based drivers. Under the settlement, app-based drivers would make a minimum wage of $32.50 per hour; be guaranteed paid sick leave; be given a stipend to buy into Massachusetts’ paid family and medical leave program; have access to a pooled health insurance benefit; and eligibility for occupational accident insurance.

Following the settlement, Massachusetts Attorney Gen. Andrea Campbell (D) endorsed the SEIU initiative, saying, “Our settlement with Uber and Lyft secured an unprecedented package of minimum wage, benefits and protections for workers. It’s a strong foundation that can and should be built upon. I’m proud to support this ballot question, which if passed, would empower and allow workers to collectively bargain for even greater pay and benefits.”

The process for initiating state statutes in Massachusetts is indirect, which means the legislature has a chance to approve initiatives with successful petitions directly without the measure going to the voters. The first round of signatures equal to 3% of the votes cast for the governor is required to put an initiative before the legislature. The second round of signatures equal to 0.5% of the votes cast for governor in the last election is required to put the measure on the ballot if the legislature rejects or declines to act on a proposed initiated statute.

The campaigns submitted the required 3% of signatures in December 2023 and were presented to the state legislature in early 2024. Since the state legislature did not act on the initiatives by May 1, the initiatives were cleared to gather a second round of 12,429 signatures to qualify for the November ballot.

In Massachusetts, a total of 76 ballot measures appeared on statewide ballots between 1985 and 2022. Forty-one ballot measures were approved, and 35 ballot measures were defeated.