Every time a woman makes the news for shattering a glass ceiling, there are hundreds of other equally important trail blazers who make that victory possible. Jane H. Malme was one of those women. She broke barriers and fought for change. She was kind, diplomatic, and always unflappable. In 1978 Jane became the first woman Chief of Local Assessment for the Massachusetts Department of Revenue. A then-recent graduate of Northeastern law school (JD, 1977), she assumed this role when people with less capacity for calm, steady leadership turned it down. The Commonwealth had just enacted a law that called for changes in local assessment practices and was deeply unpopular among many of the state’s town officials. Jane traveled to every city and town in Massachusetts, bringing each local government into the fold using her kindness, positive attitude, and power of persuasion.
Jane (Hamlett) Malme passed peacefully on April 15, 2026. Yes, tax day. She was born in 1934 in Jackson Heights, NY and grew up in Manhasset on Long Island. Jane graduated from Pembroke College of Brown University in 1956. She is survived by two loving children, Bob Malme of East Weymouth and Mal Malme (Meg Stone) of Cambridge. She was preceded in death in 2021 by her husband of 60 years, Charles I. Malme.
Always a champion of gender equality in politics, Jane was active in the League of Women Voters and The Center for Women and Politics and Public Policy at UMASS Boston. Like her mother before her, Jane was a lifelong member of P.E.O. After a successful career at the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, Jane served as Fellow at the Lincoln Institute of Land policy, bringing her expertise on local taxes to former Soviet countries as they developed and implemented land assessment and taxation policies. She authored numerous journal articles and presided over conferences and seminars in the United States and around the world.
She was a long time member of Old Ship Church in Hingham, where she served as a Deacon. A beloved and active member of the Old Ship community, Jane led the capital campaign, Friends of the Old Ship Meetinghouse, to aid in the continuous preservation of a nationally registered historic landmark, and was an enthusiastic and proud tour guide. In 2004, Jane organized with Unitarian and LGBTQ+ advocates across the South Shore to advocate for marriage equality.
Upon her retirement from Lincoln Institute in 2013, Jane and Chuck sold their Hingham home of over fifty years, and retired to Linden Ponds (Hingham) where they enjoyed several years of traveling, and participating and enjoying the community.
Jane was always a remarkably warm, generous and appreciative person who enjoyed being with friends, coworkers, Old Shippers and in community with others wherever she was. And her contributions to local and state government have had lasting impact. She blazed many trails and left a remarkable legacy.
A celebration of life will be scheduled forthcoming.
Donations in Jane’s memory can be sent to The League of Women Voters or Old Ship Church in Hingham.
For more information and online guestbook please go to www.downingchapel.com