[Adopted 3-25-2021 STM]
Pursuant to Chapter Six, Section Two of the Charter of the Town of Putnam and Section 27-135 of the Connecticut General Statutes, there is hereby created a Veterans Commission for the Town of Putnam.
A. 
There is hereby created a Veterans Commission to assist and advise the Town and its residents on veterans' affairs. Pursuant to the Connecticut General Statutes, the Commission may:
(1) 
Act as the coordinating agency in all matters concerning veterans and their dependents, coordinating the activities of public and private facilities concerned with veterans' reemployment, education, rehabilitation and adjustment to peacetime living;
(2) 
Cooperate with all national, state and local governmental and private agencies in securing services and benefits to which a veteran or his dependents may be entitled;
(3) 
Use the services and facilities of the veterans' organizations so far as possible to carry out the purposes of state statutes; and
(4) 
Encourage and coordinate vocational training services for veterans.
B. 
In addition, the Commission shall advise the Board of Selectmen on matters of concern to veterans and their families and on measures the Board of Selectmen can undertake to better serve the needs of veterans and their families.
The Veterans Commission shall be composed of seven members appointed by the Board of Selectmen for a term of five years commencing on the first day of December. The initial appointments to the Commission shall be staggered so that no more than two members' terms expire in the same year. Members shall be appointed by the Mayor, with the advice and consent of the Board of Selectmen. Any vacancy in the membership of the Commission shall be filled by the Mayor, with the advice and consent of the Board of Selectmen, for the unexpired term of such member. All members shall serve without compensation.
The Commission will elect a Chairman and adopt rules and procedures to carry out the purposes of this article. The Commission shall fix the time and place of its regular meetings and provide a method for calling special meetings. The Commission shall determine its own rules of procedure. The Commission shall keep records of its meetings and activities and make an annual report to the Mayor and Board of Selectmen. It may make special reports as the Mayor and Board of Selectmen may request from time to time.
If any section, or part of a section, of this article shall be held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such holding shall not be deemed to invalidate the remaining provisions hereof.
In accordance with the Charter of the Town of Putnam, this article shall be effective on April 21, 2021.