Massachusetts General Laws Part I. Administration of the Government (Ch. 1-182) Ch. 55B, § 10

The commission shall render a decision on any matter referred to it, pertaining to certificates of nomination or nomination papers for any presidential or biennial state primaries or any biennial state election or to withdrawals of nomination therefore, not later than five o'clock post meridian on the twenty-first day after the last day fixed for filing objections to such certificates or papers or for filing such withdrawals, as the case may be, under the provisions of this chapter. The commission shall render a decision on any matter referred to it pertaining to nominations made at biennial state primaries, not later than five o'clock post meridian on the fourteenth day after the last day fixed for filing objections to such nominations.

The commission shall render a decision on any matter referred to it, pertaining to objections that signatures appearing on an initiative or referendum petition have been forged or placed thereon by fraud and that in consequence thereof the petition has not been signed by a sufficient number of qualified voters actually supporting such petition, as required by the constitution, no later than the twenty-first day after the last day fixed for filing objections to such signatures. The commission shall render a decision on any objection filed with respect to the supplemental filing of signatures for initiative petition to be placed on the ballot after the rejection by the legislature of such petition no later than five o'clock post meridian in the afternoon on the fourteenth day after the last day fixed for filing objections to such signatures.

The commission shall render a decision on any matter referred to it pertaining to certificates of nomination or nomination papers for any special state primary or special state election not later than five o'clock post meridian in the afternoon on the fourth day after the last day fixed for filing objections to such certificates or papers.