Question 2Union rights for public defender agency workers
Read the full text of the measure: Information for Voters page for this question
In plain words
Lets workers at the Committee for Public Counsel Services, the state's public defender agency, form a union and bargain with the agency. (sec.state.ma.us )
Before and after
| Today | If YES wins | |
|---|---|---|
| What the rule is | CPCS workers cannot choose to unionize and bargain over pay, benefits, and work conditions the way most other state workers can. | CPCS workers could form a union and bargain. After a contract is signed, CPCS would ask the Governor for the money needed to pay for it. |
Numbers from the official ballot title (ballot title ); also see
Example
Illustration only: a CPCS staff lawyer and coworkers vote to form a union, which then bargains with CPCS over pay. The final contract would need state funding. (sec.state.ma.us )
Biggest change
- CPCS named as the employer for its workers under state labor law (Chapter 150E) source: sec.state.ma.us
- CPCS must request funding from the Governor after a contract is signed source: sec.state.ma.us
Who it affects most: Public defenders and other CPCS staff; people who rely on court-appointed lawyers; state budget.
Cost to the state: The Executive Office of Administration and Finance says the cost is hard to predict because bargaining results are unknown; CPCS is partly state-funded.
Our plain-words summary. Every line points to its source.
What your vote means
CPCS workers may form a union to bargain with their employer.
No change to labor law for CPCS workers.
Our one-line summary. The state's Information for Voters booklet has the official statements of what a YES and a NO vote would do.
Why people want it, and why others object
Why this is on the ballot
Voters put this on the ballot by signing a petition. It changes a state law, which lawmakers can later change. It passes with more YES than NO votes, and YES votes from at least 30% of all voters who cast a ballot.
- On May 4, 2026, a majority of the Special Joint Committee on Initiative Petitions recommended the Legislature take no action, citing the plan's scope and structure. source: sec.state.ma.us
Why supporters want it
- Official argument by Tom McKeever, Labor Unions for Public Counsel Workers Rights: CPCS workers protect the right to a lawyer for people who cannot pay; unlike other state workers they cannot choose to organize; the measure lets them decide. "Vote YES to give CPCS employees the right to choose." source: sec.state.ma.us
Why opponents object
- No organized group urged a NO vote. The Secretary of the Commonwealth wrote this argument, partly from the Legislature's majority committee report; it does not reflect the Secretary's opinion. Points: CPCS is an independent judicial-branch agency and bargaining could bring operating and money risks; it could blur lines of authority; it could reduce the agency's flexibility to meet caseload and court needs. source: sec.state.ma.us
Who backs each side
- Labor Unions for Public Counsel Workers Rights (Tom McKeever) source: sec.state.ma.us
In each side's own words where we could find them, quoted or summarized with a link to the source. We don't endorse either side.
What you will see on your ballot
Official ballot wording, word for word (tap to open)
The official ballot title, word for word from the Secretary of the Commonwealth's Information for Voters .
Question 2: Law Proposed by Initiative Petition. Collective Bargaining for CPCS Employees
Do you approve of a law summarized below, on which no vote was taken by the Senate or the House of Representatives before May 6, 2026?
YES
NO
Official summary by the Attorney General (tap to open)
This proposed law would specify that employees of the Committee for Public Counsel Services ("CPCS") are permitted to engage in collective bargaining with their employer. It would also require CPCS, after executing a collective bargaining agreement, to request the appropriation necessary to fund such agreement from the Governor.(sec.state.ma.us )
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