Massachusetts Establish the Nature for All Fund Initiative (2026)

Massachusetts Establish the Nature for All Fund Initiative
Election date November 3, 2026
Topic Parks, land, and natural area conservation and Revenue allocation
Status Certified to the legislature
Type Indirect initiated state statute	Origin Citizens

The Massachusetts Establish the Nature for All Fund Initiative may be on the ballot in Massachusetts as an indirect initiated state statute on November 3, 2026.

Overview

What would the ballot initiative do?

See also: Measure design

The ballot initiative would create a fund for state money, titled the Nature for All Fund, that would be used to further efforts of nature conservation. The initiative would require that 50% of the tax revenue from the sale and use of sporting goods, recreational vehicles, and golf courses be placed in the fund. After July 1, 2028, 100% of tax revenue from the sale and use of those items would be placed in the fund. The initiative would create a 15-person commission that would over see the use of the revenue fund.

Measure design

See also: Text of measure

Click on the following sections for summaries of the different provisions of the initiative.

Expand All

Nature Fund for All

The ballot initiative would create a fund for state money, titled the Nature for All Fund. The Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs would be tasked with using the money in the fund for purposes of natural resource conservation.

The initiative would require that 50% of the tax revenue from the sale and use of sporting goods, recreational vehicles, and golf courses be placed in the fund. After July 1, 2028, 100% of tax revenue from the sale and use of those items would be placed in the fund.

Additionally, the fund would be able to accept other sources of revenue, such as public and private gifts, grants, and donations. Government agencies, public charities, and tribal governments would be qualified recipients of expenditures from the fund.

Definition of natural resource conservation

Under the initiative, natural resource conservation includes:

• the conservation or protection of streams, rivers, lakes, and coasts, to include the protection of drinking water;
• the conservation or protection of farms, forests, or other lands in an effort to advance state goals, including biodiversity, climate, resiliency, and environmental justice;
• the creation and improvement of parks and outdoor recreation spaces, with particular emphasis on neighborhoods with limited access to such spaces;
• the conservation of land parcels to connect open spaces;
• the provision of stewardship, access, and management of outdoor resources.

Nature for All Board

The initiative would create a Nature for All Board, which would be comprised of 15 people:

• the Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs;
• the Commissioner of Fish and Game;
• the Commissioner of Conservation and Recreation;
• the Secretary of Housing and Livable Communities;
• the Climate Chief; and
• ten members of the public, including representatives of underserved communities and indigenous peoples, and at least one person with expertise or experience in natural resource conservation.

While the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs would be tasked with making expenditures from the Nature Fund for All, the board would be tasked with crafting regulations for making expenditures for the fund.

The board would be tasked with creating the following regulations for fund expenditures:

• requirements for conservation that follow environmental justice principles;
• requirements for access and restoration of lands with indigenous cultural significance;
• guidelines to promote conservation while maintaining affordable housing development;
• guidelines that prevent expenditures from the fund from decreasing the bond cap in existing government programs; and
• guidelines for the issuance of special obligation bonds to support conservation.

Annual report of expenditures

Under the initiative, each year the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs would be required to provide a report detailing the money expended from the fund, and how much of the expenditures were used to acquire or improve land in cities or towns that contain environmental justice populations. The report would need to be submitted each year to the Nature for All Board, the Environmental Justice Council, the House and Senate Committees on Ways and Means, and the Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources.

Text of measure

Full text

The full text of the ballot measure can be read here.

Support

Nature for Massachusetts is leading the campaign in support of the initiative.

Supporters

Corporations

• REI

Organizations

• Appalachian Mountain Club
• Brookline GreenSpace Alliance
• Concord Climate Action Network
• Conservation Law Foundation
• Mass Audubon
• Massachusetts Rivers Alliance
• Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust
• Quincy Climate Action Network
• Save The Bay
• The Environmental League of Massachusetts
• The Nature Conservancy
• The Trust for Public Land
• The Trustees

Arguments

• Mass Audubon: "By setting aside just a portion of the revenue already generated from the existing sales tax on sporting goods, we would be able to dedicate more than $100 million every year for the Fund without any increase in taxes."
• Nature for Massachusetts: "Nothing is more important than having clean drinking water. By conserving natural areas, forests and wildlife habitats, the state can reduce runoff in our lakes, rivers and streams — protecting the quality of our drinking water and natural habitats."

Opposition

Opponents

Ballotpedia has not located arguments in opposition to the ballot measure. You can share arguments, along with source links for this information, with us at editor@ballotpedia.org.

Arguments

You can share campaign information or arguments, along with source links for this information, at editor@ballotpedia.org.

Background

States with sporting goods tax revenue allocated to nature conservation

According to Congressional Sportsmen, Texas, Georgia, and Virginia allocate a portion of tax revenue from the sale of certain outdoor equipment to some version of a state conservation fund. In Virginia and Georgia, the state legislature introduced and approved the revenue allocation. In Texas, voters approved the revenue allocation.

In Virginia, the game protection fund is supported by revenue generated by sales tax not exceeding 2% of the sale price on specified outdoor equipment. In Georgia, the conservation trust fund is supported by 75% of all sales tax revenue from outdoor recreation equipment.

In 2019, Texas voters decided on Proposition 5, a constitutional amendment that allowed the state legislature to dedicate all revenue from the sales tax on sporting goods to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and the Texas Historical Commission. Voters approved the amendment, with 88.0% voting yes.

Question 5 (1972)

See also: Massachusetts Question 5, Environmental Constitutional Rights Amendment (1972)

In 1972, Massachusetts voters decided on a ballot measure that provided for a state constitutional right to clean air and water, freedom from excessive noise, and the protection of environmental and natural resource qualities. Additionally, the amendment authorized the state legislature to make laws to achieve the protection of those rights. Voters approved the amendment, with 82.0% voting yes.

Other natural area conservation measures on the ballot, 2026

See also: Parks, land, and natural area conservation ballot measures

Ballotpedia is tracking three other statewide ballot measures in 2026 on natural area conservation. One, in Arkansas, is pending official review. Two, in Arkansas and Missouri, have been certified for the November 2026 ballot.

State	Type	Title	Description
AR	CICA	Environmental Preservation Amendment	Provide for the fundamental right to a clean and healthy environment and allow the state legislature to implement laws to preserve it
AR	LRSS	Natural Resources Commission Bond Measure	Authorize the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission to issue up to $500 million in general obligation bonds to fund water-related infrastructure projects including water treatment and transportation, waste disposal, pollution abatement, drainage, irrigation, flood control, and wetlands and aquatic resources infrastructure
MO	ABR	Amendment 1	Renew the existing sales and use tax of 0.1% for 10 years to fund state parks and soil and water conservation

Path to the ballot

Process in Massachusetts

See also: Laws governing the initiative process in Massachusetts

An indirect initiated state statute is a citizen-initiated ballot measure that amends state statute. There are nine (9) states that allow citizens to initiate indirect state statutes.

While a direct initiative is placed on the ballot once supporters file the required number of valid signatures, an indirect initiative is first presented to the state legislature. Legislators have a certain number of days, depending on the state, to adopt the initiative into law. Should legislators take no action or reject the initiative, the initiative is put on the ballot for voters to decide.

In Massachusetts, the number of signatures required for an indirect initiated state statute is equal to 3% of the votes cast in the last gubernatorial election. Massachusetts also has a distribution requirement that requires no more than 25% of the certified signatures on any petition can come from a single county.

The state Legislature has until the first Wednesday of May in the election year to pass the statute. If the legislature does not pass the proposed statute, proponents must collect a second round of signatures equal to 0.5% of the votes cast in the last gubernatorial election. The Legislature also has the power to place an alternative measure alongside the proposed statute via a simple majority vote of the state legislature.

A simple majority vote is required for voter approval. However, the number of affirmative votes cast for the measure must be greater than 30% of the votes cast in the election.

The requirements to get an initiated state statute certified for the 2026 ballot:

• Signatures (first round): 74,574
• Signatures (second round): 12,429
• Deadline (first round): The deadline to submit the first round of signatures to the secretary of state was December 3, 2025.
• Deadline (second round): The deadline to submit the second round of signatures is July 8, 2026.

Stages of the ballot initiative

The following is the timeline of the initiative:

• August 7, 2025: The Massachusetts Attorney General announced that the initiative had been filed.
• September 3, 2025: The Massachusetts Attorney General announced that the initiative had been cleared and that supporters could begin gathering signatures for the initiative. Both versions of the initiative were approved to begin gathering signatures separately.
• November 19, 2025: Advocates of the initiative announced that the campaign had submitted more than 100,000 signatures in support of the measure.
• January 5, 2026: The state Elections Division announced that it had certified 84,343 valid signatures in support of the initiative. As such, it was certified to go before the state legislature in the 2026 legislative session.
• February 5, 2026: The initiative was introduced to the Massachusetts General Court as House Bill 5005 (H. 5005).

External links

• Massachusetts Office of the Attorney General - Ballot Initiatives for the 2026 and 2028 Statewide Elections

See also

2026 ballot measures

View other measures certified for the 2026 ballot across the U.S. and in Massachusetts.

• 2026 ballot measures
• Massachusetts 2026 ballot measures
• Massachusetts elections, 2026

Massachusetts ballot measures

Explore Massachusetts's ballot measure history, including citizen-initiated ballot measures.

• List of Massachusetts ballot measures
• Massachusetts Historical Ballot Measures Factbook
• Revenue allocation ballot measures
• Massachusetts State Legislature

Initiative process

Understand how measures are placed on the ballot and the rules that apply.

• Laws governing the initiative process in Massachusetts
• Initiated state statute
• Massachusetts Constitution

Footnotes

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