Mass. Gen. Laws » Part I Title XXI Chapter 150E
Massachusetts General Laws

Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 150E, § 7 (2026)

Collective bargaining agreements; term; appropriation requests; provisions; legal conflicts, priority of agreement; review of agreement by retirement board

✓ current as of July 2026
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Section 7. (a) Any collective bargaining agreement reached between the employer and the exclusive representative shall not exceed a term of three years; provided, however, that the employer and the exclusive representative through negotiation may agree to include a provision in a collective bargaining agreement stating that the agreement's terms shall remain in full force and effect beyond the 3 years until a successor agreement is voluntarily negotiated by the parties. The agreement shall be reduced to writing, executed by the parties, and a copy of such agreement shall be filed with the commission and with the house and senate committees on ways and means forthwith by the employer.

(b) The employer, other than the board of higher education or the board of trustees of the University of Massachusetts, the chief justice for administration and management, a county sheriff, the PCA quality home care workforce council, the CDC workforce council, the alcoholic beverage control commission, or the state lottery commission, shall submit to the appropriate legislative body within thirty days after the date on which the agreement is executed by the parties, a request for an appropriation necessary to fund the cost items contained therein; provided, that if the general court is not in session at that time, such request shall be submitted at the next session thereof. If the appropriate legislative body duly rejects the request for an appropriation necessary to fund the cost items, such cost items shall be returned to the parties for further bargaining. The provisions of the preceding two sentences shall not apply to agreements reached by school committees in cities and towns in which the provisions of section thirty-four of chapter seventy-one are operative.

(c) The provisions of this paragraph shall apply to the board of higher education, the board of trustees of the University of Massachusetts, the chief justice for administration and management, a county sheriff, the PCA quality home care workforce council, the CDC workforce council, the department of early education and care with regard to bargaining with family child care providers, the alcoholic beverage control commission, Massachusetts Department of Transportation and the state lottery commission.

Every such employer shall submit to the governor, within thirty days after the date on which a collective bargaining agreement is executed by the parties, a request for an appropriation necessary to fund such incremental cost items contained therein as are required to be funded in the then current fiscal year, provided, however, that if such agreement first has effect in a subsequent fiscal year, such request shall be submitted pursuant to the provisions of this paragraph. Every such employer shall append to such request an estimate of the monies necessary to fund such incremental cost items contained therein as are required to be funded in each fiscal year, during the term of the agreement, subsequent to the fiscal year for which such request is made and shall submit to the general court within the aforesaid thirty days, a copy of such request and such appended estimate; provided, further, that every such employer shall append to such request copies of each said collective bargaining agreement, together with documentation and analyses of all changes to be made in the schedules of permanent and temporary positions required by said agreement. Whenever the governor shall have failed, within forty-five days from the date on which such request shall have been received by him, to recommend to the general court that the general court appropriate the monies so requested, the request shall be referred back to the parties for further bargaining.

(d) If a collective bargaining agreement reached by the employer and the exclusive representative contains a conflict between matters which are within the scope of negotiations pursuant to section six of this chapter and any municipal personnel ordinance, by-law, rule or regulation; the regulations of a police chief pursuant to section ninety-seven A of chapter forty-one or of a police commissioner or other head of a police or public safety department of a municipality; the regulations of a fire chief or other head of a fire department pursuant to chapter forty-eight; any of the following statutory provisions or rules or regulations made thereunder:

(a) the second paragraph of section twenty-eight of chapter seven;

(a1/2) section six E of chapter twenty-one;

(b) sections fifty to fifty-six, inclusive, of chapter thirty-five;

(b1/2) section seventeen I of chapter one hundred and eighty;

(c) section twenty-four A, paragraphs (4) and (5) of section forty-five, paragraphs (1), (4) and (10) of section forty-six, section forty-nine, as it applies to allocation appeals, and section fifty-three of chapter thirty;

(d) sections twenty-one A and twenty-one B of chapter forty;

(e) sections one hundred and eight D to one hundred and eight I, inclusive, and sections one hundred and eleven to one hundred and eleven I, inclusive, of chapter forty-one;

(f) section thirty-three A of chapter forty-four;

(g) sections fifty-seven to fifty-nine, inclusive, of chapter forty-eight;

(g1/2) section sixty-two of chapter ninety-two;

(h) sections fourteen to seventeen E, inclusive, of chapter one hundred and forty-seven;

(i) sections thirty to forty-two, inclusive, of chapter one hundred and forty-nine;

(j) section twenty-eight A of chapter seven;

(k) sections forty-five to fifty, inclusive, of chapter thirty;

(l) sections thirty, thirty-three and thirty-nine of chapter two hundred and seventeen;

(m) sections sixty-one, sixty-three and sixty-eight of chapter two hundred and eighteen;

(n) sections sixty-nine to seventy-three, inclusive, and seventy-five, eighty and eighty-nine of chapter two hundred and twenty-one;

(o) section fifty-three C of chapter two hundred and sixty-two;

(p) sections eighty-four, eighty-five, eighty-nine, ninety-four and ninety-nine B of chapter two hundred and seventy-six;

(p1/2) the third paragraph of section 58 of chapter 31;

(q) section eight of chapter two hundred and eleven B, the terms of the collective bargaining agreement shall prevail.

(e) If the commonwealth has agreed under a collective bargaining agreement with an employee organization to exercise statutory rights of the commonwealth regarding the removal of employees in a certain manner with respect to the members of that employee organization, then the commonwealth shall exercise such rights of removal in accordance with the terms of the collective bargaining agreement.

An employer entering into a collective bargaining agreement with an employee organization shall provide a copy of the agreement to the retirement board to which the employees covered by the agreement are members. All retirement systems shall maintain files of all active collective bargaining agreements which cover the systems members. The retirement board shall review collective bargaining agreements for compliance with chapter 32.

Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, employee and employee exchange of tours shall be governed by this chapter.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 95 cases (3 in the last 5 years), 1970–2025 · leading case: Local 1652, Int'l Ass'n of Firefighters v. Town of Framingham, 813 N.E.2d 543 (Mass. 2004).
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Local 1652, Int'l Ass'n of Firefighters v. Town of Framingham, 813 N.E.2d 543 (Mass. 2004). · cites it 40× “We transferred this case to this court on our own *464 motion to consider whether town officials may fulfil their obligation under G. L. c. 150E, § 7 (b), by submitting a budget that makes full funding of a staffing provision contained in a multiyear collective bargaining…”
Boston Hous. Auth. v. Nat'l Conf. of Firemen & Oilers, Local 3, 935 N.E.2d 1260 (Mass. 2010). · cites it 16× “The BHA claimed that because G. L. c. 150E, § 7 (a), limits the term of a CBA to three years, the MOA expired by law on March 31, 2004, and, consequently, there was no agreement in force to permit the arbitration of Local 3’s grievance or to preclude the BHA’s layoff of the…”
Boston Teachers Union, Local 66 v. City of Boston, 416 N.E.2d 1363 (Mass. 1981). · cites it 10× “We are asked to decide whether the mayor may refuse to submit to the city council a request for a supplemental appropriation needed to fund an executed collective bargaining agreement; whether the mayor must submit requests for appropriations for collective bargaining agreements…”
Chief Just. v. Off. & Prof'l Employees Int'l Union, Local 6, 807 N.E.2d 814 (Mass. 2004). · cites it 9× “Among the statutory sections not listed in G. L. c. 150E, § 7 (d), are G. L. c. 221, § 82, and G.”
Boston Teachers Union v. Sch. Comm., 434 N.E.2d 1258 (Mass. 1982). · cites it 5× “44, § 33A, the terms of the agreement shall prevail. The bill inserting § 7 (d) (/) was first proposed in the House on October 30, and was adopted on October 31, after the Appeals Court issued its decision in Mendes.”
Boston Teachers Union v. Sch. Comm. of Boston, 350 N.E.2d 707 (Mass. 1976). · cites it 4× “We agree further that the school committee may make a conditional agreement requiring the expenditure of funds in excess of the appropriations available to it; that, if the school committee makes a timely request for additional funds, the mayor must submit that request to the…”
Teamsters Local Union No. 404 v. Sec'y of Admin. & Fin., 751 N.E.2d 399 (Mass. 2001). · cites it 14× “One week later, the sheriff sent a copy of the executed bargaining agreement to the Governor, requesting that the agreement be submitted to the Legislature for appropriation, pursuant to G. L. c. 150E, § 7 (c). 4 Forty-five days after the Governor’s receipt of the agreement, he…”
Adams v. City of Boston, 963 N.E.2d 694 (Mass. 2012). · cites it 5× “In addition, § 108L is not one of the statutes listed in G. L. c. 150E, § 7 (d), that yield to CBAs; therefore, the CBAs must yield to the statute and be declared invalid.”
All., AFSCME/SEIU, AFL-CIO v. Sec'y of Admin., 597 N.E.2d 1012 (Mass. 1992). · cites it 6× “Each agreement contained an article entitled “Appropriation by the General Court,” which included the following: “The cost items contained in this Agreement shall not become effective unless appropriations necessary to fully *380 fund the cost items have been enacted by the…”
Massachusetts Fed'n of Teachers v. Bd. of Educ., 436 Mass. 763 (Mass. 2002). · cites it 2× “In his memorandum of decision, the Superior Court judge noted that G. L. c. 150E, § 7 (d), provides that if a collective bargaining agreement conflicts with a statute or regulation, the terms of the collective bargaining agreement will prevail if the statute or regulation is…”
City of Somerville v. Commonwealth Emp. Relations Bd., 24 N.E.3d 552 (Mass. 2015). · cites it 4× “Except as provided in G. L. c. 150E, § 7 (d), which we shall discuss next, “[tjhere is no obligation to engage in collective bargaining as to matters controlled entirely by statute.”
Comm'r of Admin. & Fin. v. Commonwealth Emp. Relations Bd., 74 N.E.3d 610 (Mass. 2017). · cites it 3× “The unions both filed a charge of prohibited practice with the Division of Labor Relations (division), arguing, in essence, that the letter was a violation of the Commonwealth’s purported duty to support an appropriation’s request pursuant to G. L. c. 150E, §7 (b), and also that…”
Show all 95 citing cases →
— Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 150E, § 7(4) — 2 cases
Chief Just. for Admin. & Mgmt. of the Trial Court v. Commonwealth Emp. Relations Bd., 946 N.E.2d 704 (Mass. App. Ct. 2011).
Brockton Police Ass'n v. City of Brockton, 785 N.E.2d 702 (Mass. App. Ct. 2003).
— Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 150E, § 7(6) — 2 cases
Commissioners of Middlesex Cnty. v. Am. Fed'n of State, Cnty. & Mun. Employees, 362 N.E.2d 523 (Mass. 1977).
Gloucester Fire Fighters, Loc 762 v. Gloucester, 391 N.E.2d 956 (Mass. App. Ct. 1979).
— Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 150E, § 7(a) — 1 case
Saugus Police Patrol Officers Union v. Town of Saugus, 28 Mass. L. Rptr. 624 (Mass. Super. Ct. 2011).
— Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 150E, § 7(b) — 5 cases
Local 1652, Int'l Ass'n of Firefighters v. Town of Framingham, 813 N.E.2d 543 (Mass. 2004). “We transferred this case to this court on our own *464 motion to consider whether town officials may fulfil their obligation under G. L. c. 150E, § 7 (b), by submitting a budget that makes full funding of a staffing provision contained in a multiyear collective bargaining…”
Town of Saugus v. Newbury, 446 N.E.2d 1109 (Mass. App. Ct. 1983).
Fahey v. Kennedy, 4 Mass. L. Rptr. 434 (Mass. Super. Ct. 1995).
Local 762, Int'l Ass'n of Fire Fighters v. Kirk, 25 Mass. L. Rptr. 472 (Mass. Super. Ct. 2009).
Nat'l Ass'n of Gov't Employees v. Commonwealth, 2 Mass. L. Rptr. 21 (Mass. Super. Ct. 1994).
— Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 150E, § 7(c) — 1 case
City of Boston v. Boston Police Patrolmen's Ass'n, 717 N.E.2d 667 (Mass. App. Ct. 1999).
— Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 150E, § 7(d) — 19 cases
Larch v. Mansfield Mun. Elec. Dep't, 272 F.3d 63 (1st Cir. 2001).
Thomas v. Dep't of State Police, 814 N.E.2d 376 (Mass. App. Ct. 2004).
Cnty. of Suffolk v. Labor Relations Comm'n, 444 N.E.2d 953 (Mass. App. Ct. 1983).
City of Boston v. Boston Police Superior Officers Fed'n, 402 N.E.2d 1098 (Mass. App. Ct. 1980).
Sch. Comm. of Lynnfield v. Trachtman, 417 N.E.2d 459 (Mass. App. Ct. 1981).
— Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 150E, § 7(e) — 1 case
Gurley v. Town of Bridgewater, 343 N.E.2d 887 (Mass. App. Ct. 1976).
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