Energy Reform

On Wednesday, November 19^th state lawmakers ended the 2025 legislative session with more of a whimper than a roar. We entered 2025 with a looming UI crisis, double digit healthcare premium increases, and rising energy costs…and we are leaving 2025 with those same problems still left unaddressed. If there was a silver lining, it was that no new policies to devastate small businesses were enacted either.

One policy that did take a surprisingly positive turn was the House’s efforts on energy reform. Representative Mark Cusack, House Chair of the Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities, and Energy, heavily redrafted the Governor’s energy reform package to include some key reforms to address affordability and competitiveness.

The bill:

• Creates a competitiveness and affordability standard designed to prevent adverse effects on the state’s energy availability and pricing;
• Makes the 2030 carbon reduction goal an advisory, not a mandate;
• Pushes back the offshore wind deadline to 2029;
• Caps the budget for Mass Saves, as current data shows that 15 separately state-created green energy programs account for roughly 25% of ratepayers’ bills.

It was unfortunate, but lawmakers pushed this issue to 2026 succumbing to pressure from environmental activists so we ask that you take a moment to contact your lawmakers on this bill: NFIB | Urge Lawmakers to Support Energy Reform

Labor Issues

On November 17^th, the Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development heard legislation calling for a 33% hike in the state minimum wage to $20 and allowing striking workers to collect unemployment insurance (UI) benefits.

House Bill No. 2107 and Senate Bill No. 1349 raise the state minimum wage to $20 per hour. If the bill advances, it will make Massachusetts one of the highest minimum wages in the country. Additionally, House Bill No. 2071 attempts to reinstate mandatory time-and-a-half pay for retail on Sundays and holidays, a policy phased out in the 2018 Grand Bargain agreement.

House Bill No. 2168 and Senate Bill No. 1319 will only worsen the UI crisis facing Massachusetts employers by allowing striking workers to collect unemployment insurance benefits in the instance a strike lasts longer than 30 days. It also allows workers to collect benefits sooner if the business hires replacement workers.

Please take a moment to tell your elected officials how a $20 minimum wage is bad for Main Street businesses.