To the Editor:

On Tuesday evening, the Town Administrator Working Group held a public hearing to brief the current candidates for First Selectman about the Group’s work to date. All the candidates were appreciative of the Working Group’s work and expressed a willingness to evaluate and continue that work in the next administration.

That’s a good thing.

Future first selectmen (be they male or female) will need additional help in managing the day-to-day business of running Newtown while also devoting significant time to planning for the future with our other elected officials. Our town can fix that management problem without disturbing our existing government structure and should do so.

Meanwhile, however, to encourage the development of experience and expertise, Newtown should seriously consider expanding the term of the First Selectman, the Legislative Council, and the Board of Finance to four years, with staggered terms for the LC and Board of Finance members. That’s the current arrangement with our Board of Education, Planning and Zoning Commission, and Police Commission.

Although historically Newtown has been fortunate in having first selectmen who are very experienced in our town government and who have served multiple consecutive terms, that may not always be the case. Sudden, unforeseen events like COVID-19 can be better handled by experienced leadership regardless of party. Lengthening and staggering terms of office may also reduce partisan divisiveness in our local government.

Short, two-year terms, although admittedly very responsive to voter concerns, can incentivize shorter term, more partisan attitudes in both officeholders and the electorate and can result in large swings in the party makeup of our Legislative Council every two years. For example, although they did their jobs well and are not generally viewed as particularly partisan, five of the six members of our Board of Finance elected in 2021 were new to their positions. Likewise the LC also experiences significant turnover in its membership.

That can’t be good for governing with a longer-term horizon, or for thinking about “what’s best for Newtown” five and ten years down the road.

I urge the next First Selectman and Board of Selectmen to continue the Working Group, but charge them to also consider modifying the terms of office of our Selectmen, Legislative Council, and Board of Finance. These modifications would ultimately require a change to the Town Charter, but our town government would remain connected to the voters as it is today, and our officeholders would be afforded more time and space to do their jobs better. It’s worth examining in a systematic way, with transparency and public discussion.

Peter Schwarz

Newtown