2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title III - Laws Relating to State Officers › Chapter 29 - State Finance › Section 31 - Centralized Payroll System; Duties of Comptroller; Authorized Payments; Wage Garnishments

Section 31. The comptroller, in consultation with the personnel administrator and the secretary of administration and finance, may establish a centralized payroll system and may include salaries payable by the commonwealth in that system, for all classified services in any agency of the commonwealth and for teachers and supervisors employed in any school or college in any department of the commonwealth and any salary payable by the commonwealth to a person holding a statutory position.
Such centralized payroll system shall conform to such rules and regulations as the secretary of administration and finance, with the approval of the state treasurer, the comptroller and the personnel administrator, may from time to time make. Such rules and regulations shall not be subject to chapter 30A. Notwithstanding any other general or special law to the contrary, and under section 148 of chapter 149, to ensure the timely payment of wages and related payroll charges for work authorized by a spending authority and performed by employees, the comptroller shall have full authority to mandate the payment of such wages and payroll charges and prescribe, regulate and direct any spending authority to take the appropriate actions necessary to properly account for payroll charges, to ensure that payroll accounts are not in deficit at the close of the fiscal year and any other actions necessary to support sound fiscal management including appropriation, allotment or other funding limits.
The comptroller shall require certification from each spending authority that each employee receiving a salary under the warrant is being paid for duties performed directly for the employing agency and not for duties performed for another state agency or other legal entity.
The state treasurer or other state official authorized to expend money on behalf of the commonwealth may pay any salary, wages or other compensation to any person in the service of the commonwealth by means of deposits to employee bank accounts, provided, employees have expressly authorized said deposits.
The state treasurer or other state official authorized to expend money on behalf of the commonwealth may pay any retirement benefit due to any retired employee in the state system or retired teachers in the teachers retirement system by means of deposits to such retired person's bank account, provided, the retired persons have expressly authorized said deposits.
The comptroller or other state official authorized to expend money on behalf of the commonwealth may comply with administrative wage garnishments for child support, student loans, state or federal tax liens, court order bankruptcy orders or other garnishments as determined by the comptroller which name the commonwealth as employer and mandating deductions under state or federal law for employees of the commonwealth in amounts not more than the percentage allowable under state or federal law or a greater amount as authorized by the employee, provided that the commonwealth shall not use state resources or be compelled to comply with voluntary private garnishments or trustee process orders. For the purposes of this section, the term ''employee'' shall mean ''employee'' as defined in section 1 of chapter 32.