Mass. Gen. Laws » Part I Title II Chapter 7
Massachusetts General Laws

Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 7, § 50 (2026)

Commissioner of public employee retirement; powers and duties; investment advisory unit

✓ current as of July 2026
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Section 50. The public employee retirement administration commission, established under section 49, shall have general responsibility for the efficient administration of the public employee retirement system, under chapter 32. The public employee retirement administration commission's powers and duties shall include, but not be limited to:

(a) promulgating rules and regulations governing administrative procedures, financial operations, records and reports of the retirement boards, subject to the approval of the general court; provided, that if the general court takes no final action relative to such rules and regulations within forty-five days of the date said such rules and regulations are filed with the clerks of the house of representatives and the senate, the general court not having prorogued within said forty-five days such rules and regulations shall be deemed to be approved;

(b) approving the rules and regulations of individual retirement boards, as to conformity with law and regulations;

(c) performing regular desk examinations and field examinations as indicated, of all retirement systems, at least once every three years;

(d) collecting data on retirement systems, disability benefits and the rehabilitation and reemployment of injured workers and providing statistical and other reports and information to the governor and the general court, and to the public;

(e) determining charges of the various municipal retirement systems and the county boards to participating governmental units;

(f) providing training and legal and technical assistance to retirement boards;

(g) developing and maintaining information covering both superannuation and disability grants on the basis of occupational groups;

(h) review disability pensions in accordance with the provisions of section twenty-one of chapter thirty-two;

(i) developing and maintaining a list of facilities qualified to recommend or furnish rehabilitation services to injured or disabled workers;

(j) developing an effective program and procedures for the reemployment of injured or disabled workers and shall make said programs available to any employee seeking reemployment;

[There are no clauses (k) or (l).]

(m) developing and maintaining information on all retirement systems, including semi-annual and the annual reports, the assets and liabilities, and other pertinent information the public employee retirement commission deems appropriate;

(n) establish rules and regulations applicable to all public-retirement systems regarding the confidentiality of employee medical records in accordance with the provisions of clause (c) of section seven of chapter four;

(o) after consultation with representatives of the Massachusetts Medical Society and the department of public health establish uniform testing standards and procedures for the commonwealth's regional medical panels subject to his jurisdiction;

(p) develop provisions for voluntary physical fitness programs with representatives of labor, management, representatives of the Massachusetts Medical Society, and the department of public health; provided, however, that nothing herein shall affect any physical fitness programs that have been established pursuant to collective bargaining agreements;

(q) establish pre-retirement counseling programs for the retirement systems in conjunction with the applicable collective bargaining unit and provide general retirement information for all members of the system.

There shall be within the public employee retirement administration commission a unit to be known as the pension investment advisory unit. The public employee retirement administration commission, through the pension investment advisory unit, shall:

(a) advise retirement boards on investments;

(b) prescribe policies concerning personal investments of board members and all employees of the boards to prevent conflict of interest;

(c) establish a formula to measure management performance and return on investment and measure the performance of each system through said formula;

(d) establish fund management policies;

(e) coordinate the participation of boards in combined investment funds;

[There is no clause (f).]

(g) promulgate rules and regulations governing the sale by the boards of low-yield investments; provided, however, that an amortization loss schedule indicates said sale is beneficial to the system.

Said public employee retirement commission shall also promulgate rules and regulations governing said unit, subject to the approval of the commissioner of administration.

Any rules or regulations recommended by said public employee retirement commission which require the approval of the general court shall be referred by the appropriate clerks to the appropriate standing committee of the general court. Within fifteen days of receipt of any such recommendations, such committee shall transmit in writing to said public employee retirement commission its suggestions, if any, for modifications in said recommended rules and regulations. Within fifteen days of receipt of such suggestions, said public employee retirement commission shall resubmit to such committee such recommended rules and regulations, together with any modifications made thereto. No such rules and regulations shall take effect except in accordance with the provisions of this section.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 11 cases, 1988–2020 · leading case: Foresta v. Contributory Ret. Appeal Bd., 904 N.E.2d 755 (Mass. 2009).
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Foresta v. Contributory Ret. Appeal Bd., 904 N.E.2d 755 (Mass. 2009). · cites it 3× “The public employment retirement administration commission (PERAC), authorized under G. L. c. 7, § 50, to oversee, monitor, and promulgate mies and regulations applicable to the work of the Commonwealth’s retirement boards, G.”
McLaughlin v. City of Lowell, 992 N.E.2d 1036 (Mass. App. Ct. 2013). “13(2) to require that the regional medical panel’s determination be unanimous, and this amendment has been held a valid exercise of PERAC’s rulemaking authority contained in G. L. c. 7, § 50(a). 25 Id. at 796-798. “[E]ven though [G.”
Boston Ret. Bd. v. Contributory Ret. Appeal Bd., 803 N.E.2d 325 (Mass. 2004). “The retirement board argues that PERAC was required to follow the formal rulemaking procedures of G. L. c. 7, § 50, and G. L. c. 30A, §§ 2, 3, when it issued its memorandum.”
Middlesex Ret. Sys., LLC v. Bd. of Assessors, 903 N.E.2d 210 (Mass. 2009). “See G. L. c. 7, § 50; G. L. c. 32, § 21. The Legislature designated county treasurers of each abolished county to serve as the chairperson of the corresponding newly created regional retirement system until December 31, 2002.”
Massachusetts Teachers' Ret. Sys. v. Contributory Ret. Appeal Bd., 994 N.E.2d 355 (Mass. 2013). “See G. L. c. 7, § 50. General Laws c. 32, § 4 (1) (r), provides in relevant part: “Eligibility for the creditable service of members in service of a retirement system shall be conditioned upon payment, in [one] sum or in installments upon such terms as the applicable retirement…”
Pulsone v. Pub. Emp. Ret. Admin. Comm'n, 806 N.E.2d 121 (Mass. App. Ct. 2004). “” The second statute bearing on our analysis is G. L. c. 7, § 50, as amended through St. 1997, c.”
Barnstable Cnty. Ret. Bd. v. Contributory Ret. Appeal Bd., 683 N.E.2d 290 (Mass. App. Ct. 1997). · cites it 2× “See G. L. c. 7, § 50; G. L. c. 32, § 21(4) (PERA must promulgate rules and regulations only when it deems necessary).”
Blair v. Bd. of Selectmen, 526 N.E.2d 1317 (Mass. App. Ct. 1988). “630, not only created PERA itself, §§ 1 and 2 (the latter, especially, as inserting *957 G. L. c. 7, § 50[h]), and § 7 (inserting in c.”
Ret. Bd. v. Contributory Ret. Appeal Bd., 629 N.E.2d 332 (Mass. App. Ct. 1994). “Through the Division of Public Employee Retirement Administration (PERA), which has overall responsibility for monitoring and promulgating regulations for all public retirement systems, see G. L. c. 7, § 50, the board asked the panel to expound about several subjects.”
Worcester Ret. Bd. v. Worcester Hous. Auth., 5 Mass. L. Rptr. 235 (Mass. Super. Ct. 1996). · cites it 3× “In particular, the WHA relies upon G.L.c. 7, §50, which states that PERA shall have the power to “approv[e] the rules and regulations of individual retirement boards, as to conformity with law and regulations,” and upon G.”
Rodrigues v. Pub. Emp. Ret. Admin. Comm'n (Mass. App. Ct. 2020). “In any event, all of these various provisions can be considered on remand; also to be considered is the significance of the fact that HRD has not yet promulgated in- service standards for firefighters.”
— Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 7, § 50(a) — 2 cases
McLaughlin v. City of Lowell, 992 N.E.2d 1036 (Mass. App. Ct. 2013). “13(2) to require that the regional medical panel’s determination be unanimous, and this amendment has been held a valid exercise of PERAC’s rulemaking authority contained in G. L. c. 7, § 50(a). 25 Id. at 796-798. “[E]ven though [G.”
Barnstable Cnty. Ret. Bd. v. Contributory Ret. Appeal Bd., 683 N.E.2d 290 (Mass. App. Ct. 1997). “See G. L. c. 7, § 50; G. L. c. 32, § 21(4) (PERA must promulgate rules and regulations only when it deems necessary).”
— Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 7, § 50(b) — 1 case
Worcester Ret. Bd. v. Worcester Hous. Auth., 5 Mass. L. Rptr. 235 (Mass. Super. Ct. 1996). “In particular, the WHA relies upon G.L.c. 7, §50, which states that PERA shall have the power to “approv[e] the rules and regulations of individual retirement boards, as to conformity with law and regulations,” and upon G.”
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