Section 27. The commonwealth, including any department, board, commission, division or authority, or subdivision may, subject to appropriation, provide state public benefits within the meaning of Section 411 (c) of the federal Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act, P.L. 104-193 involving the use of non-federal public funds to any person, whether or not such person is classified under said act as a "qualified alien;" provided, such person meets all criteria for such benefits or services under applicable general or special laws and regulations of the commonwealth.

Section 28. Notwithstanding the provisions of section five D of chapter twenty-nine of the General Laws or any other general or special law to the contrary, in fiscal year nineteen hundred and ninety-eight, the first eighty-eight million seven hundred forty-eight thousand nine hundred eighty-two dollars in personnel expenditures charged to the university tuition retention trust fund as established in section forty-one of this act shall be exempt from fringe benefit charges established by the secretary of administration and finance in accordance with the provisions of said section five D. Said exemption shall be allocated to the individual university campus accounts established within said trust fund pursuant to a schedule developed by the chief education officer of the commonwealth and approved by said secretary.

Section 29. Notwithstanding the provisions of section five D of chapter twenty-nine of the General Laws or any other general or special law to the contrary, in fiscal year nineteen hundred and ninety-eight, the first thirty million one hundred fifty-eight thousand nine hundred thirty-nine dollars in personnel expenditures charged to the state college tuition retention fund as established in section forty-one of this act shall be exempt from fringe benefit charges established by the secretary of administration and finance in accordance with the provisions of said section five D. Said exemption shall be allocated to the individual state college accounts established within said trust fund pursuant to a schedule developed by the chief education officer of the commonwealth and approved by said secretary.

Section 30. Notwithstanding the provisions of section five D of chapter twenty-nine of the General Laws or any other general or special law to the contrary, in fiscal year nineteen hundred and ninety-eight, the first fifteen million three hundred seventy-seven thousand twenty-two dollars in personnel expenditures charged to the community college tuition retention fund as established in section forty-one of this act shall be exempt from fringe benefit charges established by the secretary of administration and finance in accordance with the provisions of said section five D. Said exemption shall be allocated to the individual community college accounts established within said trust fund pursuant to a schedule developed by the chief education officer of the commonwealth and approved by said secretary.

Section 31. Notwithstanding the provisions of any general or special law to the contrary, in order to meet the estimated costs of employee fringe benefits provided by the commonwealth on account of employees of the Massachusetts State College Building Authority and the University of Massachusetts Building Authority, and in order to meet the estimated cost of heat, light, power and other services, if any, to be furnished by the commonwealth to projects of the Massachusetts State College Building Authority, the boards of trustees of the state colleges and the University of Massachusetts shall transfer to the general fund from the funds received from the operation of said projects such costs, if any, as shall be incurred by the commonwealth for the aforesaid purposes in the current fiscal year, as determined by the appropriate building authority, verified by the chancellor of higher education, and approved by the secretary of administration and finance.

Section 32. The board of higher education is hereby authorized and directed to develop a performance measurement and compliance system for the institutions of higher education in the commonwealth. The system, to be developed in consultation with the institutions, shall include performance measures designed to accomplish the following objectives: to make education more affordable; to improve student performance; to promote student access; to ensure cost-effective use of resources; to respond to the needs of the workplace as articulated by business and labor; and to maximize fundraising from private sources. The system shall include performance indicators for each of these objectives and identify the data to be used in measuring performance.

          The board shall develop guidelines for implementation of the performance measurement and compliance system by July first, nineteen hundred and ninety-seven. Institutions shall develop implementation plans by November first, nineteen hundred and ninety-seven.

          Institutions shall develop data collection systems between January first and June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and ninety-eight. Beginning in fiscal year nineteen hundred and ninety-nine, the institutions shall collect performance data, according to standards the board has approved, and shall report such data to the board by August first, nineteen hundred and ninety-nine.

          Beginning in fiscal year two thousand, the board shall conduct an annual evaluation of the performance of each institution. The board may compare institutional performance with the performance of peer institutions with similar missions as part of its evaluation process. The failure of any institution to accomplish a reasonable number of the objectives as set out in its implementation plan, shall be deemed under-performing. If the board finds an institution to be under-performing, the institution's board of trustees shall develop and implement a performance improvement plan, including a schedule for implementation; provided, that said improvement plan shall be subject to the approval of board of higher education.

          The board shall report annually to the governor and the general court on the condition and performance of each institution of public higher education on or before November first. The board shall submit its first report on or before November first, nineteen hundred and ninety-eight.

Section 33. Section 178H of chapter 6 of the General Laws, as most recently amended by section 1 of chapter 239 of the acts of 1996, is hereby amended by inserting at the end thereof the following sentence:- Any officer authorized to make arrests may arrest without a warrant and keep in custody any person whom the officer has probable cause to believe is in violation of this section.

Section 34. Paragraph (b) of section 4A of chapter 7 of the General Laws, as most recently amended by section 35 of chapter 151 of the acts of 1996, is hereby further amended by inserting after the words "and the office of dispute resolution" in the last sentence, the following words: - and the office of workers' compensation administration.

Section 35. The third sentence of the eighth paragraph of section 42J of chapter 7 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 1994 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "overhead", in line 52, the following words:- , and the commissioner may retain and expend any funds paid to so reimburse the office without further appropriation.

Section 36. The first paragraph of section 50 of chapter 7 of the General Laws, as most recently amended by section 2 of chapter 306 of the acts of 1996, is hereby amended by striking out subparagraphs (k) and (l).

Section 37. Section 51 of chapter 7 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 1994 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking the third paragraph.

Section 38. Chapter 7A of the General Laws, as appearing in the 1994 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out section 12 and inserting in place thereof the following section:-

          Section 12. All reports published pursuant to this section shall be filed with the governor, the secretary of administration and finance, the house and senate committees on ways and means and the clerks of the house and senate, and any other parties specified in general or special law.

          (a) The comptroller shall prepare an annual statutory basis financial report based on the final closing of the accounting records. Such statutory basis financial report, so-called, shall be published not later than October thirty-first of each year.

          The report shall present fairly the aggregated financial statements for the budgeted governmental funds, the non-budgeted governmental funds, the capital project governmental funds, the proprietary funds, the fiduciary funds, and the general fixed assets and general long-term obligations account groups; such statements shall be audited in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards and generally accepted governmental auditing standards, and the report of the auditor shall be included.

          The comptroller shall include, supplemental to the aggregated financial statements in the statutory basis financial report, a statement of the consolidated net surplus in the operating funds for the preceding fiscal year, and the amount by which such surplus exceeds one-half of one percent of the total amount of state tax revenues as defined in chapter twenty-nine B, the amount in the Commonwealth Stabilization Fund at the close of the preceding year, and the amount by which such amount exceeds five percent of the budgeted revenues and other financial resources pertaining to the budgeted funds.

          Accompanying the statutory basis financial statements the comptroller shall include financial statements for such individual funds as have been established by law, and combining statements for such funds, including but not limited to a statement that compares the budget to final operations for each fund subject to appropriation. In addition, the comptroller shall publish a supplementary schedule to the statutory basis financial report of the balances, revenues, and expenditures of the non-appropriated funds maintained by each public institution of higher education.

          The comptroller may include such narratives, statistical tables, and other disclosures and reference material in the statutory basis financial report as are recommended by the legislature, the auditors, or as are common in general practice and that he deems appropriate in his professional judgment; provided further, that such disclosures shall include a statement of obligations and expenses incurred by the commonwealth for bond counsel and bond underwriting for such fiscal year, and a statement of all agreements for debt collection services, revenue optimization projects, and cost savings projects.

          The comptroller shall produce a set of revenue and expenditure records for each account that comprises the underlying detail to the statutory basis financial report. This revenue and expenditure account detail, so called, shall be available to any party upon request.

          (b) The comptroller shall prepare an annual federal funds report based on the final closing of the accounting records. Such final federal funds report, so called, shall be published not later than the second Wednesday in January. The report shall present fairly all federal funds received by each agency and department during the fiscal year. Said report shall include for each program of federal financial participation the opening balances, revenues, and other sources, expenses and other uses, and ending balance for the fiscal year. The final federal funds report shall be audited in conjunction with the state single audit and the report of the auditor shall be included.

          (c) The comptroller shall prepare a comprehensive annual financial report in conformity to generally accepted accounting principles. Such comprehensive annual financial report, so called, shall be published not later than the second Wednesday in January. The report shall present fairly the general purpose financial statements of the commonwealth and related notes and other reference material, in conformity to generally accepted accounting principles. The general purpose financial statements and related notes and other reference material required by generally accepted accounting principles shall be audited in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards and generally accepted governmental auditing standards and the report of the auditor shall be included.

          The comprehensive annual financial report shall include a statement showing the medicaid liability and a statement showing the total medicaid liability, whether paid or unpaid, measured pursuant to generally accepted accounting principles.

          The comptroller may include narratives, statistical tables, and other disclosures and reference material in the report that the auditors recommend and that he deems appropriate in his professional judgment.

Section 39. Section sixty-one of chapter ten of the General Laws is hereby repealed.

Section 40. Section 9 of chapter 15A of the General Laws, as most recently amended by sections 48,49,50, and 51 of chapter 151 of the acts of 1996, is hereby further amended by striking out subsection (i) and inserting in place thereof the following new subsection:--

          (i) develop a rational and equitable statewide tuition and fee plan for the public institutions of higher education listed in section five, which shall take into account per student educational costs, all student charges, and the need to maximize student access to higher education regardless of financial circumstances. The board shall establish guidelines, to which each board of trustees shall adhere, governing the implementation of said plan. Said guidelines shall be filed with the house and senate committees on ways and means and the joint committee on education. Said guidelines shall include definitions of charges and shall indicate whether said charges shall be classified as tuition or fees. Said guidelines shall establish a range for tuition and a range for total student fees. Each board of trustees shall establish tuition rates and fees that are within said ranges. Said guidelines shall be established in such a manner as to enable the boards of trustees to establish tuition rates and fees for the academic year on or before the preceding May thirty-first.

Section 41. Chapter 15A of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 9B, as added by section 29 of chapter 38 of the acts of 1995, the following sections:-

          Section 9C. Monies received by the board of trustees of a public university from application fees and tuition charges, excluding those fees and charges received on account of summer and evening sessions, shall be deemed funds received on account of the commonwealth and shall be credited on the books of the commonwealth to a separate fund to be known as the university tuition retention trust fund which the state comptroller shall establish pursuant to the provisions of section seven of chapter seven A of the General Laws. Said fund shall be accounted for on the Massachusetts management accounting and reporting system (MMARS). The state treasurer shall act as custodian of the fund

          Each public university campus shall have its own account within the university tuition retention trust fund. Each such account shall be credited with monies received from each institution. Monies from each such account shall be disbursed at the direction of the said campus from which the monies in the account originated, in accordance with the annual financial plan prepared by the board of trustees of each said campus and approved by the board of higher education and the fiscal policy division; provided, that any balance in any such account at the close of a fiscal year shall be available for expenditure in the subsequent fiscal year, and shall not revert to the General Fund. Each such financial plan shall provide for disbursement and expenditures for the operation, administration, and maintenance of said campus; provided, that such expenditures may include capital improvements, financial assistance, and salaries for personnel, up to a maximum established in the board of higher education's guidelines; provided further, that said funds, all collection of said funds, and all expenditures of said funds shall be subject to guidelines prepared by said board and subject to audit by the chief education officer of the commonwealth

          Section 9D. Monies received by the board of trustees of a state college from application fees and tuition charges, excluding those fees and charges received on account of summer and evening sessions, shall be deemed funds received on account of the commonwealth and shall be credited on the books of the commonwealth to a separate fund to be known as the state college tuition retention trust fund which the state comptroller shall establish pursuant to the provisions of section seven of chapter seven A of the General Laws. Said fund shall be accounted for on the Massachusetts management accounting and reporting system (MMARS). The state treasurer shall act as custodian of the fund.

          Each state college shall have its own account within the state college tuition retention trust fund. Each such account shall be credited with monies received from each college. Monies from each such account shall be disbursed at the direction of the college from which the monies in the account originated, in accordance with the annual financial plan prepared by the board of trustees of each said college and approved by the board of higher education and the fiscal policy division; provided, that any balance in any such account at the close of the fiscal year shall be available for expenditure in the subsequent fiscal year, and shall not revert to the General Fund. Each such financial plan shall provide for disbursement and expenditures for the operation, administration, and maintenance of said college; provided, that such expenditures may include capital improvements, financial assistance, and salaries for personnel up to a maximum established in the board of higher education's guidelines; provided further, that said funds, all collection of said funds, and all expenditures of said funds shall be subject to guidelines prepared by said board and subject to audit by the chief education officer of the commonwealth.

          Section 9E. Monies received by the board of trustees of a community college from application fees and tuition charges, excluding those fees and charges received on account of summer and evening sessions, shall be deemed funds received on account of the commonwealth and shall be credited on the books of the commonwealth to a separate fund to be known as the community college tuition retention trust fund which the state comptroller shall establish pursuant to the provisions of section seven of chapter seven A of the General Laws. Said fund shall be accounted for on the Massachusetts management accounting and reporting system (MMARS). The state treasurer shall act as custodian of the fund.

          Each community college shall have its own account within the community college tuition retention trust fund. Each such account shall be credited with monies received from each college. Monies from each such account shall be disbursed at the direction of the college from which the monies in the account originated, in accordance with the annual financial plan prepared by the board of trustees of each said college and approved by the board of higher education and the fiscal policy division; provided, that any balance in any such account at the close of a fiscal year shall be available for expenditure in the subsequent fiscal year, and shall not revert to the General Fund. Each such financial plan shall provide for disbursement and expenditures for the operation, administration, and maintenance of said institution; provided, that such expenditures may include capital improvements, financial assistance, and salaries for personnel up to a maximum established in the board of higher education's guidelines; provided further, that said funds, all collection of said funds, and all expenditures of said funds shall be subject to guidelines prepared by said board and subject to audit by the chief education officer of the commonwealth.

Section 42. Section 15 of chapter 15A of the General Laws, as appearing in the 1994 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the third paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following new paragraph:-

          The board of trustees of the university shall receive its appropriation directly, in one sum, less such funds as the general court may designate for the board of higher education to hold and disburse for funding the accomplishment of such performance goals as the board of higher education may set for the university. The board of higher education shall disburse funds appropriated for the state college system and the community college system to the boards of trustees of each institution by establishing allocation accounts; provided, however, that the board of higher education shall use a percentage of these funds, as the general court designates, for distribution to the state and community colleges for the accomplishment of such goals as the board of higher education may establish.

Section 43. Section 9K of chapter 23, as appearing in the 1994 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out in lines 1, 10, 12, 14, and 16, the word "commissioner," and inserting in place thereof, each time it appears, the following word:- director.

Section 44. Section 9L of chapter 23, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out in lines 2, 4, 14, and 19, the word "commissioner," and inserting in place thereof, each time it appears, the following word:- director.

Section 45. Section 9M of chapter 23, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out in line 1, the word "commissioner," and inserting in place thereof the following word:- director.

Section 46. Section 9N of Chapter 23, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking in lines 2 and 24, the word "commissioner," and inserting in place thereof, each time it appears, the following word:- director.

Section 47. Section 24 of chapter 23A of the General Laws, as appearing in the 1994 Official Edition, is hereby amended by adding at the end thereof the following paragraph:-

          OITI shall from time to time organize trade missions to foreign countries on behalf of the commonwealth. Trade mission participants shall include businesses of the commonwealth and such public officials as may be appropriate. The attendance by a state employee at a scheduled trade mission event shall be deemed to be within the proper discharge of his official duty and such attendance shall not be subject to the provisions of section three of chapter two hundred and sixty-eight A.

Section 48. The last sentence of section 2H of chapter 29 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 1994 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the words "clause (h) of section five" and inserting in place thereof the words: - section twelve of chapter seven-A.

Section 49. The first sentence of the second paragraph of section 2I of chapter 29 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 1994 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the words "August fifteenth" and inserting in place thereof the words:- November thirtieth.

Section 50. The first sentence of the second paragraph of section 2FF of chapter 29 of the General Laws, as most recently amended by section 2 of chapter 203 of the acts of 1996, is hereby amended by striking the words "The comptroller shall report each September in the preliminary financial report of the commonwealth" and inserting in place thereof the words:- the comptroller shall report in the annual statutory basis financial report.

Section 51. Chapter 29 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 2FF the following new sections:-

          Section 2GG. There shall be established and set up on the books of the commonwealth a separate fund to be known as the Transitional Aid to Needy Families Fund. There shall be credited to such fund all revenues and federal reimbursements pursuant to the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 or any successor federal statute. Amounts credited to said fund shall be available for expenditure subject to appropriation.

          Section 2HH. There shall be established and set up on the books of the commonwealth a separate fund to be known as the Child Care Fund. There shall be credited to such fund all revenues and federal reimbursements pursuant to the Child Care and Development Fund or any successor federal statute and all revenues directed to said fund by provision of a general appropriation act or any supplemental or deficiency appropriation act. Amounts credited to said fund shall be available for expenditure subject to appropriation.

          Section 2II. There shall be established and set up on the books of the commonwealth a separate fund to be known as the Social Services Program Fund. There shall be credited to such fund all revenues and federal reimbursements pursuant to the Title XX Social Services Block Grant or any successor federal statute and all revenue directed to said fund by provision of a general appropriation act or any supplemental or deficiency appropriation act. Amounts credited to such fund shall be available for expenditure subject to appropriation.

Section 52. Chapter 29 of the General Laws, as amended by section 51 of this act, is hereby further amended by adding at the end thereof the following section:-

          Section 2JJ. There is hereby established on the books of the commonwealth a separate fund to be known as the Massachusetts Prison Industries Enterprise Fund. Revenue and other financial sources credited to said fund shall include proceeds from the sale of department of correction industries products and services to governmental and non-governmental customers, any subsidies or appropriations enacted for the purpose of providing financial resources to this fund, and interest income from investments performed by the state treasurer on behalf of the fund. Expenditures and other financial uses charged to said fund shall not be subject to appropriation and shall include salary and costs for state employees and inmate employees, operational expenses, costs for goods produced, acquisition of capital equipment and property, and other expenses as deemed relevant to the successful operation of the enterprise as the commissioner of the department of correction may determine. Said commissioner is further authorized and directed to take actions necessary to conduct the enterprise including but not limited to hiring employees, executing contracts, purchasing and acquiring goods, materials and services, entering into arrangements for the promotion and sale of products, and other actions consistent with state finance law and sound business practice.

          The commissioner shall complete and publish by December thirty-first each year a report consisting of a financial statement that furnishes an accounting for revenues, expenditures and changes in fund balance for the Massachusetts Prison Industries Enterprise Fund for the prior fiscal year; provided, that such financial statements shall conform to accounting principles as determined by the state comptroller. Such financial statements shall be delivered to the secretary of administration and finance. The report shall also include a financial plan presenting all expected and proposed revenues and other financial sources, expenditures and other financial uses, net gain or loss from operations, and changes in fund balance for the current fiscal year. The financial plan shall also include detail on the number of state employees employed in the prison industries enterprise fund, the amount of state appropriation subsidy requested and expected, and other relevant details; shall conform to any guidelines the budget director of the commonwealth may determine; and shall be submitted to the secretary of administration and finance. The report shall include detailed information consisting of the number and location of industries, the quantity of each good produced or service performed, the cost of materials and labor, sales and actual receipts by purchaser, the average length of time between delivery and receipt of payment, the average length of time between when an order was placed and delivery occurred, the number of inmates employed in each facility and industry, and recidivism and employment statistics on former employees.

          The state comptroller shall review the report for the prior fiscal year by March first of each year, and, based on said review, shall transfer from the Massachusetts Prison Industries Enterprise Fund to the General Fund an amount equal to fifteen percent of the net operating profit generated by said Massachusetts Prison Industries Enterprise Fund in said prior fiscal year. The net operating profit is the amount of proceeds deposited to the fund, excluding interest, minus expenses.

Section 53. Section five of chapter twenty-nine of the General Laws is hereby repealed.

Section 54. The first sentence of section 5B of chapter 29, as appearing in the 1994 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the words "September twenty-fifth and March fifteenth" and inserting in place thereof the words:- October fifteenth and April fifteenth.

Section 55. The first sentence of section 5C of said chapter 29, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the words "September fifteenth" and inserting in place thereof the words:- October thirty-first.

Section 56. Sub-division (a) of said section 5C of said chapter 29, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out in lines 5 and 6 the words "as certified in accordance with section five".