Amendments to this Charter shall be made in
the manner provided by the Constitution of the state in Article of
Amendment, Article XXVIII, § 8.
To the extent that any specific provision contained
in this Charter conflicts with any provision expressed in general
terms, the specific provision shall prevail.
(1)
Any powers, duties or functions which are required
by law to be exercised, performed or administered by a particular
officer or officers of the Town shall be carried out by the officer
or officers who by this Charter or by ordinance or by law are responsible
for the same, regardless of the title or designation of the office.
(2)
To the extent permitted by state law, all Town officers
shall be qualified electors of the Town.
[Amended 11-10-2002; 11-2-2010]
(3)
The term "officer or officers" as used in this Charter
shall refer only to the Town Administrator, members of the Town Council,
the Town Clerk and the Finance Director. This section shall control
the use of the term "officer(s)" as to any other usage in this Charter
that is inconsistent herewith.
[Amended 11-10-2002]
[Amended 11-2-2010]
Every officer of the Town shall, before entering
upon the duties of his/her office, take and subscribe to the following
oath or affirmation, to be filed and kept in the office of the Town
Clerk:
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"You (naming the person) do solemnly swear (or,
affirm) that you will be true and faithful unto this state, and support
the laws and Constitution thereof, and the Constitution of the United
States; and that you will well and truly execute the office (naming
the office) for the term for which you have been elected (or appointed),
or until another be engaged in your place, or until you be legally
discharged therefrom; so help you God (or this affirmation you make
and give upon peril of the penalty of perjury)."
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The Town Council shall require a bond, in such
amount and with such surety as the Town Council may specify, from
all persons entrusted with the collection, custody or disbursement
of any of the Town moneys and may require such bond from such other
officials and employees as it may deem advisable and all as required
by law. The premiums on such bonds shall be paid by the Town unless
provided otherwise.
[Amended 9-15-2009 by Ord. No. 2009-11]
(1)
The
Town Council may provide by ordinance a system of retirement allowance
to augment federal social security or other pension plan payments,
if any, for the Town's regular full-time paid employees, and for the
contribution by employees and the Town to a fund from which such allowance
shall be paid. The Town may enter into a contract with any insurance
company authorized to do business in this state for the purpose of
insuring the whole or any part of its retirement plan.
(2)
Exemption
of "applicant" and/or "new hire" currently "vested" with a minimum
of 10 years' qualified prior employment in the State of Rhode Island
Municipal Retirement System (MERS).
(a)
The
Town may elect to waive required enrollment into a Deferred Compensation
Plan 457B, for nonunion classified employees hired after July 1, 2008,
only if the applicant for consideration is currently enrolled in the
Rhode Island MERS or equivalent State of Rhode Island retirement plan
and has prequalified as a "vested" participant in the system. The
Town may then allow the employee in question to maintain his/her enrollment
in the MERS pension plan and make all contributions in accordance
with the plan.
Unless and as otherwise provided by law, all
records and accounts of every office, department or agency of the
Town shall be open for inspection by the public at all reasonable
times and under reasonable regulations established by the Town Council,
except records and documents the disclosure of which would tend to
defeat the lawful purpose which they are intended to accomplish. A
copy of all such rules or regulations made by any department or agency,
except those which relate to its internal organization or management,
shall be filed in the office of the Town Clerk.
If any section or part of a section of this
Charter shall be held invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction
such holding shall not affect the remainder of this Charter, nor the
context in which such section or part of section so held invalid may
appear, except to the extent that an entire section or part of section
may be inseparably connected in meaning and effect with the section
or part of section to which such holding shall directly apply.
No officer or employee of the Town government,
including the members of the School Committee, shall be financially
interested in the profits of any contract, job, work or service to
be performed for the Town or in the voluntary sale to the Town of
a land, property, materials, supplies or equipment, other than as
the beneficiary of a patent or copyright or as a minority stockholder
with ownership of not exceeding 5% of such stock outstanding. Any
Town officer or employee found guilty of a willful violation of said
provisions shall be personally liable to the Town to the extent that
the Town suffers loss thereby.
The Town Council, not later than January 1,
1962, and at least every 10th year thereafter, shall cause to be prepared
a revision or codification of the ordinances of the Town which are
appropriate for continuation as local laws of the Town. Such revision
or codification shall be prepared under the supervision of the Town
Solicitor, but the Town Council may authorize the Town Solicitor to
contract for the services of persons or organizations experienced
in the revision and codification of ordinances and statutes.
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § C17-11, Appointment and
discharge of subordinates, was repealed 11-2-2010.
[Amended 11-2-2010]
The membership of any appointive board or commission
shall not be composed entirely of members of the same political party,
and any minority member shall be a bona fide member of his/her party.
Recommendation of candidates for appointment shall be made by the
respective Town party chairperson.
[Amended 7-1-1971; 11-10-2002]
No person shall be eligible to hold any paid
office or employment or to serve on any board or commission in the
Town government who holds any other Town office or serves on any other
board or commission, or holds any civil office, legislative, executive
or judicial, in either the state or federal government, except that
of notary public or member of the National Guard or Military Reserve,
and except as otherwise provided in this Charter or by general law.
[Amended 11-2-2010]
No employee of the Town shall hold an elective
office in the Town government while he/she is in the employ of the
Town.
[Amended 11-10-2002; 11-2-2010]
It shall not be necessary for the full text
of a Charter or amendments to a Charter to be printed upon the ballot.
Any digest or description thereof or any question or statement which
substantially expresses the purpose or identifies the subject matter
to be voted upon shall be sufficient. When any question is to be submitted
to the voters, the Town Council shall approve the statement of the
question as it shall appear upon the ballot. The Town Council shall
provide exact wording of all proposed Charter changes to the public
at least 60 days prior to the general election. The said information
shall be available for public review in the office of the Town Clerk,
on the Town web site and at the public library.
[Amended 11-2-2010]
All paid personnel holding office or employment
in the Town government, other than an elective office, shall be required
to engage in the actual work of their offices or employments during
regular business hours to the extent that their services may be necessary
for the full and complete discharge of their duties. The Town Council,
upon recommendation of the Town Administrator, shall determine which
officials and employees of the Town shall not be required to devote
their full-time to the duties of their respective offices, except
as provided by this Charter.
All elected and appointed officers of the Town
of Lincoln shall be qualified electors of said Town.
[Amended 11-10-2002]
The Town Council, in 1975 and, at a minimum,
in every fifth year thereafter, shall make a comprehensive review
of the Town Charter and shall recommend whatever amendments it shall
deem necessary or desirable and provide for such amendments to be
submitted to the electors at a general or duly called special local
election. If in any year that such review is required hereunder the
Town Council shall conclude that no Charter amendments are necessary
or desirable, the Town Council shall pass a resolution to that effect,
which resolution shall be evidence of compliance with this section.
Unless and as otherwise provided by law, all
boards and committees will keep minutes of their meetings including
therein all votes taken. The minutes shall be filed with the office
of Town Clerk and available for inspection by the public at the Town
Hall at all reasonable times and under reasonable regulations as established
by the Town Clerk.
[Added 11-2-2010]
Any member of an appointed department, office, commission, committee,
council, board, agency or authority, or any person who has been appointed
who does not attend at least 2/3 of regularly scheduled meetings,
actually convened, during any one-year period, unless excused by the
Chairperson, shall be reported to the Town Council. The Town Council
may take any and all appropriate action, including removal of that
person from the body on which they sit. It shall be the duty of the
Chairperson to give prompt written notice of such absenteeism to the
Town Council or the Administrator.
