By Bob Katzen

A proposed law that would require companies to make it easier to cancel subscriptions was included in Gov. Healey’s version and the Senate’s version of the fiscal 2027 state budget, but the House did not include it in their version. The conference committee that hammered out a compromise version of the budget chose not to include the requirement in its version which was approved by the House and Senate and sent to Gov. Healey. The proposed law would have required that methods of canceling a subscription are as simple as the methods of signing up for that one. The idea has gathered support as many entertainment options shift into monthly subscription models, leaving individuals to manage a portfolio of differing payment cycles.

House Ways and Means Chairman Aaron Michlewitz (D-Boston), who led budget talks on the part of the House, said that the proposal still needs some work but added that he’s sure the issue will resurface, possibly very soon. “From the House side, I don’t think it’s that we were averse to the discussions” he said. “I think it was just more about the mechanics, how to make it actually be meaningful and work, and I don’t think, from our end, we were there yet.”

“I think the attorney general has already put some regs out there,” continued Michlewitz, referring to subscription rules issued by Attorney General Andrea Campbell last year. “I’m not saying that those are the final decision or the final direction to go, but I do think we’re examining that, while also having a further conversation related to how to put this into statute. He noted that the proposed regulations will be considered soon as part of an upcoming Economic Development bill this year or early next year.