The civic record
Read. Follow. Verify.Massachusetts bill creates civil penalties for installing backyard surveillance cameras to harass neighbors
Last action · March 26, 2026: Accompanied a study order, see H5281 (under House Rule 27)Sponsors: Joe McKenna and 1 other
Track this bill to get notified when it advances a stage. One tap to stop, anytime.
What This Bill Would Do
Residential property owners and tenants gain the right to sue for damages if someone installs an adjoining video device to record backyard activities without consent and with the intent to harass, annoy, alarm, or threaten. Law enforcement personnel performing authorized duties are exempt from this restriction.
Creates a new legal avenue for residents to seek financial damages against neighbors or property owners who use surveillance cameras to monitor private backyard spaces.
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
residential property owners and tenants
Residential owners and tenants gain a new private right of action to sue for damages against unauthorized video surveillance of their backyards.
law enforcement personnel
Law enforcement personnel are explicitly exempted from the restrictions while engaged in authorized duties.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who can sue under this bill?
Are security cameras installed by police officers affected?
How is a backyard defined in the bill?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
Follow the record
Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
4 actions- Mar 26, 2026HouseAccompanied a study order, see H5281 (under House Rule 27)
- Oct 10, 2025JointHearing scheduled for 10/21/2025 from 01:00 PM-05:00 PM in A-2
- Feb 27, 2025SenateSenate concurred
- Feb 27, 2025HouseCommitteeReferred to the committee on The Judiciary
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Sources
malegislature.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance45How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy40Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz25Current news / social attention level
Publisher tools