Hearing Set July 18—

Charter Panel Sets Priorities

By John Voket

Members of the new Charter Revision Commission (CRC) rolled up their sleeves in a stifling Mary Hawley Room at Edmond Town Hall Tuesday, and got down to the business of prioritizing some of the issues they might tackle early on in the revision process. The panel also set a date for a public hearing, looked at the timeline for future meetings, and all but ruled out the likelihood their work would be completed in time for revisions to appear on the November 2006 ballot.

Among suggested priorities for early consideration were the elimination or restructuring of town meetings, providing greater political consideration to unaffiliated voters in elected and appointed offices, and examining municipal financial practices. Each commissioner took the opportunity to discuss his/her first impressions of the current charter and its mandates.

LeReine Frampton suggested the commission might want to consider scrapping the town meeting form of government altogether. She said in her experience as registrar of voters, that the spirit in which town meetings were originally intended — to give all taxpayers a voice in major local government decisions — no longer applied in the present day.

Charter commissioner Joseph Hemingway agreed, saying most recent initiatives passed by the town meeting process were done by just a handful of taxpayers. He also pointed out that one of the last times the practice was used to pass a budget, many in attendance felt the process was inappropriately influenced by unqualified attendees.

Commissioner Joan Plouffe said she felt municipal budget and financial practices were among the most important issues to consider, and that she also developed “other issues outside the charge,” that were in some cases interrelated to elements of the charge.

But Ms Plouffe then suggested the CRC “start at the top,” examining whether the town should retain its executive structure with a First Selectmen/Board of Selectmen system.

“If that is done first, it will have a ripple effect on almost everything else in the charge,” she said.

Ms Plouffe told her fellow commissioners that she wanted to consider expanding opportunities for unaffiliated voters.

“Forty-four percent [of voters in Newtown] are unaffiliated, but there are no provisions for them to sit on boards,” she said.

At that point, commission chairman Al Cramer said he, too, had prioritized examining the form of government and the makeup of town leadership.

“Should we have a mayor/council, a town council/manager?” he asked rhetorically. “We should come to grips with that early on.”

Guy Howard said he though the revision process should begin at an even more fundamental starting point, by determining where the local government gets its direction.

“There’s no basic picture as to what we’re supposed to do as a town government, it’s just a money grab,” he said. “Maybe we need to determine what we are doing and for whom before we look at leadership and money issues.”

Carolyn Signorelli said she felt at this time, budget and financial matters were the largest issue in the community.

“As the town grows, we’ll need more expertise on how to manage the money,” she said, adding that in the future, the entities that manage the town’s finances will have to provide even greater accountability for their actions.

At that point Mr Cramer said he was planning to invite the first selectman, council chairman, and town Finance Director Ben Spragg in to discuss at length their practices and powers as they relate to the existing charter.

Mr Hemingway said that while the CRC examines the structure and hierarchy of the local government, the group should also look at term lengths.

“[Elected officials] spend too much time running for office,” Mr Hemingway said.

Mr Cramer countered that if the commission was to agree to extend terms to four years, it should concurrently entertain adopting a recall provision.

Conversation then turned back to issues regarding party affiliations and the need for appropriate representation for the majority of voters who are unaffiliated.

Ms Frampton said that the Board of Education seemed to be the subject of a lot of scrutiny lately, but said she understood its six members each had a lot of responsibilities. She said that perhaps the school board should be made up of nine members to help lighten the load of individuals, and suggested that the charter require that the Board of Education makeup to include just one member from each major party.

“That way unaffiliated voters could petition to get on the ballot, and it would force the town committees to put up candidates every election,” Ms Frampton said. “I suggest we look at requiring just one party representative on each board.”

Ms Signorelli said that virtually all candidates for elected positions are picked by either the Republican or Democratic Town Committees, and that even appointed positions are filled on the recommendation of party leaders. Mr Howard said he felt that situation needed to be changed.

“I am unaffiliated and plan to remain that way, but I want to be represented,” Mr Howard said.

Mr Hemingway then reminded the commissioners that like Mr Howard, many voters remain unaffiliated specifically because they do not want to be registered with one or the other major party.

“These voters make a choice not to affiliate,” he said.

Ms Plouffe said the mandated party structure on boards and commissions may be the main reason behind voter apathy during local elections.

“There are no elections in this town. [Candidates] virtually run unopposed and a lot of people feel disenfranchised,” Ms Plouffe said. “Besides, we’re missing out on a lot of talented people who don’t have a chance to serve on town government.”

Ms Signorelli then suggested the CRC look at state statutes on party affiliations and local mandates on board and commission makeup to determine how best to move forward with any proposals on the issue.

As the meeting drew to a close, Mr Cramer posed a question about timing, asking if any members thought the CRC could complete its duties in time to move revisions for inclusion on the November 2006 ballot. All the commissioners agreed that the 2007 budget referendum would make a more practical goal.

Mr Cramer then confirmed the board would be able to convene a quorum next Tuesday, July 18, and scheduled the mandated public hearing on issues related in the council’s charge to the Charter Commission. The public hearing will be conducted next Tuesday at 7 pm in the Mary Hawley Room at Edmond Town Hall.