Town of Yarmouth, MA CHAPTER 2 LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

Section 2-1 Open Town Meeting.

2-1-1 The legislative powers of the town shall be vested in a town meeting open to all voters. A quorum for conducting town business shall be set by by-law.

Section 2-2 Presiding Officers.

2-2-1 A moderator, elected as provided in chapter three, shall preside and regulate the proceedings of each session of the town meeting.

Section 2-3 Annual Town Meeting.

2-3-1 The annual town meeting shall be held on a date fixed by by-law and at such time and place as the board of selectmen shall designate.

Section 2-4 Special Town Meetings.

2-4-1 Special town meetings may be held at the call of the board of selectmen at such times as it may deem appropriate and whenever a special town meeting is requested by voters in accordance with procedures, established by section 2-7.

Section 2-5 Warrants.

Every town meeting shall be called by a warrant issued by the board of selectmen which shall state the time and place at which the town meeting is to convene, and by separate articles, the subjects which are to be acted upon. Publication and distribution of warrants for town meeting shall be in accordance with by-law of the town governing such matters.

Section 2-6 Articles Having Fiscal Implications.

2-6-1 All proposed operating expenses shall be included in a single article in the annual town meeting warrant.

[Amended 5-27-2010 by Chapter 114 of the Acts of 2010]

2-6-2 The board of selectmen and the finance committee shall review and comment on all articles calling for the appropriation of funds that are to be considered at any annual or special town meeting.

Section 2-7 Initiative Petition.

[Amended 5-27-2010 by Chapter 114 of the Acts of 2010; 1-22-2020 by Chapter 11 of the Acts of 2020]

As provided by section 10 of chapter 39 of the General Laws, the voters of the town, by written petition to the board of selectmen, may:

(i) if 10 voters sign the petition, secure the inclusion of an article in the warrant for the annual town meeting; provided, however, that the petition shall be submitted in accordance with the by-law governing town meeting warrants;

(ii) if 100 voters sign the petition, secure the inclusion of an article for the warrant of any special town meeting; provided, however, that the petition shall be submitted in accordance with the by-law governing town meeting warrants; or

(iii) if 200 voters sign the petition, require the calling of a special town meeting.

Section 2-8 Town Meeting.

2-8-1 Town officers, members of boards and commissions, department heads, or their duly designated representatives, shall attend town meeting for the purpose of furnishing information when proposals affecting their particular office, board, commission, or department are included in the warrant. The town moderator shall be the presiding officer of town meetings as provided in section 2-2, shall regulate its proceedings and shall perform such other duties as may be provided by the General Laws, this charter, by-law or vote of town meeting. The town moderator shall appoint members to special committees as designated by town meeting vote.

[Amended 5-27-2010 by Chapter 114 of the Acts of 2010]

2-8-2 The town clerk shall prepare, in consultation with the moderator, rules of parliamentary procedure in simplified form, which shall be made available for distribution to all those requesting them, to new voters at time of registration, and to those in attendance at town meetings.

2-8-3 Any individual eligible to speak at town meeting shall not speak more than once, unless and until all other voters wishing to speak, making themselves known and being recognized by the moderator, have been provided an opportunity to speak. No individual shall speak on any article for more than 5 minutes at any 1 time except upon receiving permission of the moderator in advance of such individual's presentation. This restriction shall not apply to the presenter of the article making a motion to move the article, the individual making a motion to amend the article or to those individuals required to be in attendance under section 2-8-1.

2-8-4 Only registered voters of the town of Yarmouth shall have the right to address town meeting or vote on any article presented at any town meeting.

2-8-5 A Yarmouth property owner who is not a registered voter, an authorized representative of such a property owner or of a registered voter who is not present at town meeting, or any other individual may be permitted to address town meeting only in the discretion of the town moderator.

2-8-6 The board of selectmen shall, by recorded vote in the warrant, indicate its recommendations on all articles.

2-8-7 A motion for reconsideration of any article acted upon at an annual or special town meeting may not be made prior to 15 minutes following the final vote on the article to be reconsidered, nor more than 1 hour after such vote, unless deliberations on another article are pending at the expiration of such hour, those deliberations need not be interrupted and such a motion may be made immediately following the conclusion of the consideration of that article and prior to the consideration of any further article. This minimum time limitation shall not apply to any article acted upon within the last 15 minutes of town meeting, nor shall the time limitations include any time when town meeting is not in session.

2-8-8 No motion, the effect of which would be to dissolve town meeting, shall be in order until every article on the warrant has been duly considered and acted upon. This requirement shall not preclude the postponement of an article or consideration of any motion to adjourn the meeting to a stated time and place.

2-8-9 All special committees created by town meeting shall make a report in accordance with the schedule set by the town meeting action which created the committee. Written copies of such reports shall be submitted to the town clerk, town administrator and the board of selectmen and shall be published in full or in summary form in the next annual town report.