An Act to increase the penalty for school tardiness

This bill proposes to increase the maximum fine for parents or guardians whose children are excessively tardy or absent from school. Currently, Massachusetts law allows a penalty of up to twenty dollars per day of non-attendance, but this legislation would raise that limit to fifty dollars per day. The change directly affects families with school-aged children and school districts that enforce attendance policies. By amending Chapter 76 of the General Laws, the bill aims to impose a higher financial cost on repeated instances of student truancy.