Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Citizens' Petitions

There are at least four citizens' petition items on the warrant for the May town meeting, and one selectmen's item that stems from a citizens' petition.

1. Amending the zoning bylaw to eliminate all the long, long verbiage on cell tower equipment and to substitute for it a short provision empowering the selectboard - not the planning board - to grant special permits for cell tower equipment.
2. Amending the general bylaw to confirm the moderator's right to allow nonresidents to speak at town meetings in his discretion. The Curnins lawsuits - seeking a "right" to speak - have muddied the water on this issue, and this change would clear them up.
3. Urging the selectmen to pursue reimbursement of the town's legal costs from anyone who sues the town seeking a "right" to speak. The courts have thus far uniformly rejected that contention, and it's not fair for us taxpayers to bear the burden of defending against it. This article also urges the moderator not to let speak any nonresident who has sued the town and hasn't reimbursed it for its legal costs.
4. Seeking an appropriation for blankets, supplies, etc., to be available at one or more locations in town in an emergency.

The selectmens' item is an amendment to the general bylaw to increase the quorum requirement for a town meetuing from 60 to 100. Sixty is less than 7% of the town's voters. With that low a number, all too often a smallish group of townspeople pack a town meeting and push through something advantageous to them but that wouldn't pass if everyone were to vote on it.

More on all these, and other items on the agenda for the meeting, during the next month or so. Comments welcome, as always.

1 comment:

Gary Warner said...

Question: Do residents have a "right" to speak at town meetings?


For Example: Isn't it true that if a resident is simply re-stating what another had already said, the moderator can move on to the next person.

Isn't it also true that voters can vote to end discussion by calling for a vote on the item at hand?

If true, then even residents don't have an absolute right to speak.

And if 2nd home owners are guaranteed a right to speak at town meeting, then what happens if there is a vote to end discussion before every non-resident that want's to speak has had their say?