[HISTORY: Adopted by the Special Town Meeting 9-30-1974 by Art. 9
as Ch. II of the 1975 Bylaws. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Amended STM 9-9-1976 by Art. 1; ATM 4-16-1996 by Art. 16]
The annual election of the Town officers shall
be held on the second Tuesday of May of each year, and the Annual
Town Meeting of each year shall be held on the third Tuesday of May
starting at 7:00 p.m.
The terms of office of all officials elected
at the Annual Town Election shall not commence until after the adjournment
of the Annual Town Meeting. All other officials elected and appointed,
holding office at the time of the Annual Town Election, shall continue
in office until their successor has been qualified or appointed.
A.Â
The warrants for all Town Meetings shall be directed
to a constable of the Town, and every Town Meeting shall be notified
by posting copies of the warrant calling the same in not fewer than
three public places in the Town seven days at least before the day
of said meeting.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former Subsection B, added STM 6-29-2000 by
Art. 3, was repealed 5-20-2014 ATM by Art. 9.
If, by reason of mistake, defect in the warrant
or other irregularities, the Annual Meeting is not properly called
as herein provided, it shall be called and held as soon thereafter
as may be practicable.
Whenever a Town Meeting is adjourned to a time
certain, the Town Clerk shall cause notice of the time and place of
holding such adjourned meeting to be posted and published if there
be time to do so.
No motion whose effect would be to dissolve
a Town Meeting shall be in order until every Article in the warrant
therefor has been duly considered and acted upon, but this shall not
preclude an adjournment of a meeting to a stated time.
At any Town Meeting held for the transaction
of Town business, no person whose name is not upon the list of voters
shall be admitted to the floor of the hall without the permission
of the meeting, and it shall be the duty of the police officers and
constables to enforce this section, but the same shall not apply to
state elections or meetings for the election of Town officers, while
voters are casting their ballots. The Moderator shall determine the
bounds of the floor of the hall.
Twenty-five legal voters shall constitute a
quorum at the Annual or any Special Town Meeting, except such parts
as may be devoted to the election of Town officers.
The Moderator shall preserve decorum and order,
may speak on points of order in preference to others and shall decide
all questions of order.
On any question submitted for consideration
of a Town Meeting, there shall be a vote taken by written ballot when
2/3 of the voters present and voting so decide.
When two or more people happen to rise at once,
the Moderator shall name the one to speak first.
No voter shall speak more than three times on
one question without first obtaining leave of the meeting, nor more
than twice until others who have not spoken shall speak if they desire.
No person who is not a voter shall address the
meeting until he has first obtained permission from a majority of
those present and voting so to do.
All committees shall be appointed and announced
by the Moderator unless otherwise specifically directed by the meeting.
When any voter shall make a motion, and such
a motion be seconded by another, or, when a member of the Finance
Committee representing a majority of the Finance Committee shall make
a motion on any Article requiring the appropriation of money, the
same shall be received and considered by the meeting and not otherwise.
No one shall be allowed to stand up to the interruption
of another, except for an incidental motion, or pass unnecessarily
between the Moderator and the person speaking.
Every motion shall be reduced to writing if
the Moderator so desires.
Any voter may call for a division of the question
where the sense will admit of it.
No motion or proposition of a subject which,
in the opinion of the Moderator, if different from that under consideration
shall be admitted under color of amendment.
When a vote is doubted, the voters for or against
the question, when called upon by the Moderator, shall raise their
hands or stand uncovered until they shall be counted.
Smoking shall not be permitted on the floor
of any Annual or Special Town Meeting.
A.Â
When a question is before the meeting, the Moderator
shall receive no motion that does not relate to the same, except a
motion to adjourn or some other motion that is privileged in its nature,
and shall receive no motion relating to the same, except:
B.Â
These motions shall have precedence in the order in
which they are here arranged. Under a motion to postpone indefinitely,
debate upon the merit of the main question shall be allowed.
When a vote has passed, it shall be in order to move for reconsideration thereof so long as the vote to reconsider, or the announcement of the intent to move for reconsideration, is done during the meeting at which the original vote was taken and not at a postponed or continued portion thereof. When a motion for Chapter 20, § 20-23, Reconsideration of vote, is decided, that decision shall not be reconsidered.
Parliamentary procedure in accordance with the
publication entitled "Town Meeting" shall be followed.
[Added STM 10-27-2008 by Art. 6]
On Town meeting matters requiring a two-thirds
vote by statute, the Town Moderator may declare the two-thirds vote
without taking a count, and said declaration shall take the place
of the statutory counted vote; provided that the vote so declared
is not immediately questioned by seven or more voters as provided
in Chapter 39, Section 15 of the General Laws. If the vote is questioned,
the Moderator shall immediately put the question to another vote and
take a count which shall then be recorded by the Town Clerk.
