Question 2
Question 2: Collective Bargaining for Committee for Public Counsel Services Employees Initiative
On the ballot
Massachusetts · November 2026 general election · Citizen initiative · Election day November 3, 2026
Topics: Criminal justice, Labor and wages
In plain language
Question 2 would add employees of the Committee for Public Counsel Services, the state agency that employs Massachusetts public defenders, to the list of public employees allowed to bargain collectively under state labor law. A 2015 attempt to organize the agency’s staff was rejected on the ground that those employees were not named in the law establishing public-sector bargaining rights. The measure would also require the agency to ask the governor for the funding needed for a collective bargaining agreement within 30 days after entering into one.
Fiscal impact
No official fiscal note has been issued for this measure yet.
When the state publishes a fiscal analysis, it will appear here and be listed in the sources below.
What supporters and opponents say
These are summaries of arguments made by the named organizations, drawn from the sources listed below. They are their claims, not this site's, and this site takes no position on the measure.
What supporters say
- SEIU Local 888 President Tom McKeever says roughly 180 other state agencies already have the right to bargain collectively while the Committee for Public Counsel Services does not, and that its staff want the same rights as other state employees.
- The American Federation of Teachers Massachusetts says a 2015 organizing petition was denied only because these employees were not explicitly listed in the state’s collective bargaining law, and that a yes vote would add them to that list.
- The National Association of Government Employees and Progressive Massachusetts have said they support the measure.
What opponents say
- Ballotpedia reports that it has not located an organized campaign or published arguments opposing Question 2 as of August 2026.
Official ballot language
The certified ballot text is not yet available for this measure. Once the state certifies it, the verbatim wording will appear here.
Sources
Everything on this page traces to these sources. Follow them to read the original documents.
- Massachusetts Elections Division, Secretary of the Commonwealth — Elections and Voting
- Massachusetts Elections Division — Ballot Question Numbers Assigned for November Ballot
- Massachusetts Attorney General — Ballot Initiatives Submitted for the 2026 Biennial Statewide Election
- Massachusetts Attorney General — Petition 25-22: Initiative Petition for a Law Relative to Labor Relations Policies for Committee for Public Counsel Services Employees (full text)
- Ballotpedia — Massachusetts Question 2, Permit Collective Bargaining for Committee for Public Counsel Services Employees Initiative (2026)
- Boston.com — These 9 statewide ballot questions will be up for a vote in November
Last updated . How this page is sourced and corrected is described in the correction policy.