On Wednesday, January 7, Massachusetts lawmakers will reconvene for the second year of the legislative session. While a substantial portion of the year will be focused on budgetary matters, other issues are anticipated to be addressed regarding:

1. The cost of energy. Last session a bill filed by Governor Healey was reworked late in the year by the House Chairman of the Telecommunications, Utilities, and Energy Committee. The redrafted legislation seeks to roll back some of the state’s carbon reduction goals that were driving up energy bills for residents and small businesses.
2. Health insurance expenses will likely also be addressed in some capacity. For years, NFIB warned lawmakers that employers faced annual double-digit premium increases making it near impossible to offer affordable coverage to their workers. Now that the state is facing financial pressure from the federal government on the cost of health insurance because of expiring subsidies, the issue is now on the radar screens of legislators.
3. Labor cost issues will also be considered again as surround state minimum wages in Connecticut and Rhode Island are higher than Massachusetts. This has prompted lawmakers to urge leadership to prioritize a bill raising the state minimum wage to $20 per hour. NFIB provided opposition comments against these bills last November in a hearing arguing small businesses cannot afford higher labor costs.
4. Unemployment insurance will also continue into this session. As of December 2025, Massachusetts began repaying $2.1 billion to the federal government because of a state accounting error. This means Massachusetts employers are now on the hook to repay nearly $5 billion from pandemic related layoffs. Making matters worse, the maximum weekly benefit is now $1,105/week, recipients can collect for 30 weeks, and a higher portion of claims are higher income earners. This translates into the UI Trust fund becoming insolvent by Q4 of 2027, triggering more UI tax hikes. NFIB will continue to make this a priority issue in 2026.

As session continues and bills begin to move again, NFIB will provide you with updates on key pieces of legislation that impact your bottom line.