H977 • 2025

An Act relative to data collection on below threshold wells

Active

The official status still shows this bill as active or still awaiting another formal step.

Sponsor: Kristin E. Kassner
Last action: 2026-02-26
Official status: Referred to House Committee on Ways and Means
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

An Act relative to data collection on below threshold wells

An Act relative to data collection on below threshold wells By Representative Kassner of Hamilton, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No.

What This Bill Does

An Act relative to data collection on below threshold wells By Representative Kassner of Hamilton, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No.
977) of Kristin E.
Kassner relative to data collection on below threshold wells.
Environment and Natural Resources.

Limits and Unknowns

This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Bill History

2026-02-26 House
Bill reported favorably by committee and referred to the committee on House Ways and Means
2025-12-24 House
Reporting date extended to Wednesday, March 18, 2026
2025-08-28 House
Reporting date extended to Wednesday, December 31, 2025
2025-05-21 Joint
Hearing scheduled for 06/03/2025 from 01:00 PM-05:00 PM in A-1
2025-02-27 House
Referred to the committee on Environment and Natural Resources
2025-02-27 Senate
Senate concurred

Official Summary Text

An Act relative to data collection on below threshold wells
By Representative Kassner of Hamilton, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 977) of Kristin E. Kassner relative to data collection on below threshold wells. Environment and Natural Resources.
Status:
Referred to House Committee on Ways and Means

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

Bill H.977

SECTION 1. Section 20 of Chapter 21G shall be amended to insert the following: - Local boards of health or other permitting bodies that oversee local permitting of wells in municipalities shall provide annually by December 31st, a report of the below-threshold wells permitted to the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). Data should include, but not be limited to: Location/address of well; primary use (i.e., residential, irrigation, commercial, farming); and year of permit issuance.

SECTION 2. DEP shall use this data to estimate withdrawals from below-threshold wells at a sub-basin scale. Estimated below threshold well withdrawals shall be included in estimates of water withdrawals by basin and considered when DEP is issuing water withdrawal permits.

SECTION 3. Local Boards of Health or other appropriate local permitting authority shall implement water conservation measures for these below-threshold wells during drought consistent with the municipality’s current drought conditions and water use restrictions or in identified flow depleted basins.

SECTION 4. Chapter 21G Section 4 shall be amended to strike the first sentence and replace it with “The withdrawal volume threshold to be applied pursuant to sections five and seven shall be twenty thousand gallons per day.”

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