Members of the Legislative Council, the latest Charter Revision Commission, and the council's Charter Revision Communications Committee appear to be having some challenges engaging Newtown residents about the comparatively mundane but no less important ballot measures voters are being asked to weigh in on as they mull their various political endorsements at the polls November 8.

This Election Day is not just about supporting presidential, state, and a few local candidates - it represents an opportunity for Newtown voters to support or reject a sweeping overhaul of the community's constitutional document, which has been refined into a much more progressively designed and user-friendly publication.

Council representatives, whose responsibility it is to oversee the process of considering updates or revisions to the charter, have made 2016 the year to take the most comprehensive reformatting of the document since its inception to voters. And on November 8, residents at Newtown's polls will have two questions related to that revision before them.

The first is to reject or accept what framers believe is the only potentially controversial issue across the entire revision, whether to locally mandate a change to the minimum number of minority political party representatives permitted to serve on Newtown's Board of Education.

If a majority of voters accept that charter measure, it would be instituted shortly after Election Day, and influence the local 2017 school board election outcomes. If that single item is rejected, the current minority party minimum - which is consistent with state statute - remains unchanged.

One of the most significant concerns facing volunteers who played roles in revising the charter layout and content overhaul is that most are barred by law from advocating for it. Taking that into consideration, however, has not stopped officials from hosting two of three planned, and so far poorly attended, Charter Revision information sessions.

The third and final of these sessions is set for 7 pm, on November 3, in the meeting room of C.H. Booth Library, 25 Main Street.

During more than a year of meetings, Charter Revision Commissioners poured through the document, spending another substantial amount of time reframing how Newtown would accept or dispose of public property. And while this measure may have specific interest to a number of residents or others, council representatives decided it did not rise to the level of creating a second break-out question on the November 8 ballot.

So by endorsing question number two, voters would be accepting that proposed, newly formatted and more user-friendly document, which reduces redundancy and potential confusion in sections that have been inserted over the years in piecemeal fashion as intermittent charter revisions were incorporated.

Besides the aforementioned info sessions, the council's charter communications committee has published and is circulating the explanatory language that will also be available to voters at the polls this Election Day. Along with advertisements in The Newtown Bee and notices on social networks, they have produced an informational pamphlet that voters can take and use, breaking down revision information into even more plain and simple language.

The pamphlet presents question number one as follows:

"Shall the charter be amended to provide that the maximum number of members from any one political party permitted to serve on the seven (7) member board of education shall not exceed four (4), (the current charter provides that the limitation is five (5) members from any one political party)?"

The pamphlet goes on to offer the following explanation:

The State of Connecticut requires that no more than 5 members of a 7-member board be from any one political party unless modified by Town Charter. The party representation for the Board of Education [subsection 2-30(c) in the existing charter and subsection 2-10(b)(2) in the proposed charter] has been modified as follows.

Existing Charter: A maximum of 5 members from the same political party is permitted.

Proposed Charter: The number of members of any one political party who may serve on the 7-member Board of Education shall not exceed 4.

Charter question number two is then outlined:

"Shall the remaining charter amendments adopted by the legislative council on November 18, 2015 be approved notwithstanding the results of question number 1 above?"

And it offers the following points:

The processes of creating and approving a town budget [sections 5-01(b)(6) and 6-10 through 6-14 in the existing charter and sections 6-01 through 6-25 in the proposed charter] have been restructured and expanded.

Existing Charter: The duties of the finance director are stated as "prepare an analysis of all budget requests." The budget advisory questions are:

"Do you deem the proposed sum of $___ to be appropriated for the Board of Selectmen as 'too low'?" and

"Do you deem the proposed sum of $___ to be appropriated for the Board of Education as 'too low'?"

Proposed Charter: The current processes for managing the budget, including the role of the finance director, have been codified. The proposed budget advisory questions are changed to read:

"If the proposed sum of $__ for the Board of Selectmen is not approved, should the revised budget be higher?" and

"If the proposed sum of $__ for the Board of Education is not approved, should the revised budget be higher?"

The proposed charter includes processes to be followed in the event of a failed referendum, directing the Legislative Council to confer with the Board of Selectman and the Board of Education for changes in their respective budgets. The Legislative Council shall also request updated financial recommendations from the Board of Finance.

The proposed charter requires that both budgets be amended to reflect voter-approved appropriations and made publicly available.

Regarding appropriations: Elimination of town meetings necessitates changes to the appropriations processes [section 6-30 in the existing charter and section 6-35 in the proposed charter].

Existing Charter: The Legislative Council has authority to make special or emergency appropriations up to $0.5 million per item, with a maximum of $3 million annually. Appropriations over $0.5 million and less than $10 million are also voted on in town meetings. Appropriations of $10 million or more are sent to a town referendum.

Proposed Charter: The Legislative Council has authority to make special or emergency appropriations up to $1.5 million per item, with a maximum of 1 mill of the grand list (currently about $3 million) annually. Appropriations over $1.5 million will appear on the annual budget referendum ballot unless prohibited by timing or other factors. In such case, a special referendum will be called.

Regarding acquisition and disposition of Real Property: the processes for acquisition and disposition of real property [section 7-90 in the existing charter and chapter 8 in the proposed charter] have been modified. The proposed charter requires that procedural details for all processes be codified in town ordinances. Key changes include:

*Real Property Acquisition

Existing Charter: The Legislative Council may authorize a single real property transaction up to and including $0.5 million. A town meeting is also required for transactions over $0.5 million and less than $10 million. A referendum is required, in addition to Legislative Council authorization, for transactions of $10 million or more.

Proposed Charter: The Board of Selectmen initiates the acquisition of real property. The property must be appraised. If the acquisition requires an appropriation less than or equal to $1.5 million, the Legislative Council authorizes the acquisition. If an appropriation is over $1.5 million, a referendum is also required.

*Real Property Disposition

Existing Charter: The Legislative Council approves the disposition of town-owned real property and a town meeting is required for authorization.

Proposed Charter: The Board of Selectmen initiates the disposition of town-owned real property. The property must be appraised. For properties under or at $1.5 million, the Legislative Council, with input from all boards having an interest in the property, authorizes the disposition. Properties over $1.5 million require authorization from the Legislative Council along with a referendum. Signage and local publication are required.

*Method of Disposition

Existing Charter: Town-owned real property can be disposed of by sealed bid, public auction, or private sale/lease requiring Legislative Council approval. All properties must be sold to the highest bidder.Proposed Charter: Town-owned real property can be disposed of by public auction, or private sale/lease requiring Legislative Council approval. The Legislative Council may authorize the sale of the property based, in part, on a potential buyer's binding commitment to use the property for a specific purpose.

Anyone with general or specific questions on the proposed charter revisions is urged to attend the November 3 information session at the library, or to contact one or more of their district council representatives.