1.3 Eligible Lists, the 2n + 1 Rule, Bypasses & Score Reviews

1.3 Eligible Lists, the 2n + 1 Rule, Bypasses & Score Reviews

Passing the written exam puts your name on a list. It does not guarantee a job. This section explains:

• how HRD builds and maintains the list;
• how departments draw names from it;
• what a bypass is; and
• the deadlines for challenging HRD or department decisions.

How the Eligible List Is Built

Under M.G.L. c. 31, § 25, HRD ranks the names of everyone who passed in order of their marks, subject to the preferences in § 26. Two deadlines apply:

• HRD must establish the list within six months of a written exam.
• Candidates must be notified of results within 60 days.

The March 2026 timeline met both deadlines: exam on March 11, score release on April 17 and list establishment on June 1.

How long eligibility lasts

Eligibility from a list lasts no more than two years. There are three exceptions:

• the candidate is in military service;
• a court has enjoined HRD from certifying from the list; or
• no new list has been established, in which case eligibility continues until one is.

Highest score prevails

When results from a new exam arrive while an older list is still active, HRD merges the passers into one list. Section 25 says your standing is based on your highest score for that position.

HRD's 2026 posters apply this to candidates who took more than one police exam within two years after November 20, 2024. The highest score prevails and expires two years after the date you were placed on the list with it. There is one catch, explained in HRD's FAQ:

Rank, ties and employment locations

• Rank is your position on a department's list. Rank 10 means nine names are ahead of you.
• Ties within rank is the number of candidates with your exact score and preference status.
• When score notices go out, you can select additional employment locations beyond the town where you claim residency, and you can update those choices later. If your name does not appear on a department's list, check whether you selected that department.

Requisitions and the 2n + 1 Formula

When a department wants to hire, it submits a requisition. Names are then certified in list order, applying the preference order from Section 1.2.

Personnel Administration Rule (PAR) .09 limits the appointing authority's choice. If it will make $n$ appointments, it may appoint only from among the first $2n + 1$ persons on the certification who are willing to accept.

Willingness matters. Under c. 31, § 25:

• If you fail to respond to a notice of certification, or refuse a job after saying you would accept it, your name can be removed from the list.
• After three such refusals, your name may not be certified again from that list.

Vacancy notices arrive by email with instructions and deadlines, and HRD also posts open vacancies under "Who Is Hiring?" Under PAR.08, a certification from a public safety list becomes void unless the department appoints within 12 weeks, though HRD can extend that period.

Bypasses

A bypass happens when a department appoints someone ranked lower than a willing, higher-ranked candidate. Under c. 31, § 27:

• Written reasons. The department must give the highest-ranked candidate a written statement of the reasons, and the lower-ranked appointment is not effective until that statement is delivered.
• Right to appeal. The statement must explain the candidate's right to appeal to the Civil Service Commission within 60 days of its issuance.
• Removal from future certifications. A bypassed candidate is not certified again from the same list unless the Commission orders it.

What happens on appeal

The Commission asks whether the department had reasonable justification. In City of Cambridge v. Civil Service Commission, 43 Mass. App. Ct. 300 (1997), that means adequate reasons supported by credible evidence, weighed by an unprejudiced mind using common sense and correct rules of law. The department must prove this by a preponderance of the evidence.

Bypass cases often involve:

• untruthfulness during the background investigation;
• poor driving or employment records; or
• documented misconduct.

Purely subjective impressions rarely hold up. If the Commission orders relief, HRD can place the candidate at the top of the department's list for the next vacancy; HRD's list order calls this a Chapter 534 or 310 placement. Under c. 31, § 2(e), the Commission may also award up to $25,000 in attorneys' fees for bad faith or for egregious or repeated violations.

Reviewing Your Score

M.G.L. c. 31, § 22 gives three kinds of review:

Write these deadlines down when your score notice arrives. They are short, and late requests are typically refused.