2017-2018 LEGISLATIVE SESSION

Information on bills filed by Representative Peisch for the 2017-2018 session

H.2874: An Act Ensuring High Quality Pre-Kindergarten Education
This bill establishes a grant program through the Department of Early Education and Care for districts to develop a high quality pre-kindergarten plan for children age 2 years, 9 months until kindergarten. The bill lays out required standards that districts must meet in order to receive the grant and creates a tiered plan to give grant preference to level 3, 4, and 5 schools according to DESE’s accountability rankings. 
To read the full text of the bill, please click here.
H.2578: An Act Relative to the State Retiree Benefits Trust Fund Board of Directors
In 2011, municipalities gained the option to invest Other Post-Employment Benefits (OPEB) funds in the State Retiree Benefits Trust Fund. The Fund is overseen by the State Retiree Benefits Trust Fund (SRBTF). This bill would add a municipal seat to the SRBTF Board to best serve the interests of municipalities investing in the fund.
To read the full text of the bill, please click here.
H.2708: An Act Relative to Energy Efficiency Funds Generated by Municipal Light Plants
This bill allows for Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) monies to be returned to municipal light plants in support of energy efficiency projects that directly benefit customers.
To read the full text of the bill, please click here.
H.183: An Act Relative to Small Brewers
This bill aims to update antiquated wholesale laws that prevent small brewers from choosing the best wholesaler partner to help grow their small businesses. Current regulations prevent a craft beer brewer from switching wholesalers without lengthy and costly proceedings. This bill seeks to address this problem by providing small brewers with a definitive process by which they can change wholesalers and provide for reasonable compensation to wholesalers for any “good will” the brand has earned through the wholesaler’s work.
To read the full text of the bill, please click here.

Major pieces of legislation passed during the 2017-2018 legislative session

Pregnant Workers Fairness Act
This summer, the Massachusetts Legislature passed the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, which guarantees reasonable accommodations and safety measures for pregnant workers. The legislation makes it illegal for an employer to discriminate against, refuse to employ, or terminate an individual due to pregnancy or a condition related to pregnancy, including lactation or the need to express breast milk for a nursing child. Reasonable accommodations may include time off to recover from childbirth; more frequent, longer paid or unpaid breaks; procuring or modifying equipment or seating; obtaining a temporary transfer, job restructuring, or lighter duty; and private non-bathroom space for expressing breast milk. The law directs companies to engage in a collaborative, good faith process with employees and prospective employees to determine effective and reasonable accommodations. In specific instances, employers may require documentation pertaining to the need for accommodations from an appropriate health care or rehabilitation professional. This requirement does not apply to accommodations for more frequent restroom, food or water breaks, seating and limits on lifting over 20 pounds.
The law prohibits employers from taking the following actions against an employee who is pregnant or has a condition related to the employee’s pregnancy:
· Taking adverse action against an employee who requests or uses a reasonable accommodation;
· Denying an employment opportunity to an employee based on the need for the employer to make a reasonable accommodation;
· Requiring an employee to accept an accommodation if it is unnecessary for the employee to perform the essential functions of the job;
 · Requiring an employee to take a leave of absence if another reasonable accommodation may be provided without undue hardship to the employer; and
· Refusing to hire a person who is pregnant because of the pregnancy or because of a condition related to the person’s pregnancy, if that person can perform the essential functions of the job with a reasonable accommodation that does not impose an undue hardship on the employer.
An Act Establishing the Massachusetts Pregnant Workers Fairness Act was signed into law by Governor Baker on July 27th and goes into effect on April 1, 2018.
Access Law
On November 20th, Representative Peisch joined her colleagues from the Massachusetts Legislature in witnessing Governor Baker sign into law An Act Relative to Advancing Contraceptive Coverage and Economic Security in our State. This law makes Massachusetts the first state to take action to safeguard access to no-copay contraception since the Trump Administration’s decision in October to weaken provisions of the Affordable Care Act related to women’s health and preventive care. The law requires health insurers to cover contraception and contraceptive services in Massachusetts, including education, counseling and follow-up treatment, without any out-of-pocket cost to the patient. The law requires health insurers to cover at least one form of each type of birth control. In an effort to contain healthcare costs, insurers can choose to only cover the generic drug version, unless a patient’s doctor specifies a version. Understanding that consistency is critical to effective use of contraceptives, the law allows patients to pick up a twelve-month supply of medicine subsequent to an initial three-month prescription.
The legislation also mandates no-copay coverage for emergency contraception with a prescription. The legislation underscores the economic impact of contraception coverage. Access to preventive healthcare and affordable contraception continues to have a significant impact on the economic stability of women. Contraception make up about 30 to 44 percent of out-ofpocket healthcare spending for women. Since 1960, it is estimated that about one-third of the wage gains made by women are the result of access to birth control. The legislation was filed at the beginning of the session in response to the uncertainty caused by the effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act. And the urgency of the issue increased following the Trump Administration’s executive order in October that made it easier for companies to opt out of covering birth control on religious or moral grounds. The law has an exemption for insurance plans purchased by a church or a church-owned entity, and would also not apply to self-insured businesses, which account for some of Massachusetts' largest employers.