Massachusetts H 4552: An Act ensuring students' access to academic transcripts

Bill Text

HOUSE . . . . . . . . No. 4552

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, March 24, 2022.
The committee on Higher Education to whom was referred the petition
(accompanied by bill, House, No. 1347) of David Henry Argosky
LeBoeuf and others relative to students' access to academic transcripts at
institutions of higher education, reports recommending that the
accompanying bill (House, No. 4552) ought to pass.

For the committee,

DAVID M. ROGERS.

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FILED ON: 2/2/2022
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 4552

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the One Hundred and Ninety-Second General Court
(2021-2022)
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An Act ensuring students' access to academic transcripts.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:

1 SECTION 1. Chapter 15A of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2016 Official
2 Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after section 19E the following section:-
3 Section 19F.
4 (a) Institutions of higher education shall not withhold a student's official academic
5 transcripts for any academic credits and grades for any course for which a student’s tuition and
6 mandatory course fees are paid in full. An institution may withhold official transcripts for
7 academic credits and grades for any course for which a student's tuition and mandatory course
8 fees are not paid in full. For students paying on a per semester basis, such an institution may
9 withhold a student’s academic credits or grades for any course taken in a semester for which that
10 student’s tuition and mandatory course fees have not been paid.
11 (b) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent an institution of higher education
12 from withholding a student's diploma or degree due to that student's failure to pay any loan
13 payments, fines, fees, tuition, or other expenses owed to the institution.

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14 (c) This section shall apply to all postsecondary institutions including: (i) the system of
15 public institutions of higher education, established in section 5; (ii) private occupational schools,
16 as defined in section 263 of chapter 112; and (iii) private colleges, universities and other
17 institutions of higher learning.
18 (d)The department of higher education shall promulgate regulations consistent with this
19 section necessary for its implementation.