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Basic Procedures
Warning and Notice for Town Meeting
How do citizens find out when Town Meeting will be held, and what will be on the agenda? The “Warning.”
The warning and notice for Town Meeting are mailed to Middlesex residents within the pages of the Town Report. They are also posted in a least three public places in town, including the Town Clerk’s office. The warning and notice announce the date, time, place, and agenda of the meeting. They also give information on voter registration, including the cut-off date for applying for addition to the checklist. If the Australian (printed paper) ballot is used (as it is to elect officers in Middlesex), the warning and notice provide information about when the polls open and how to get an absentee ballot.
Getting Articles on the Warning
The warning for Town Meeting is prepared by the Selectboard: it includes articles proposed by the Board that deal with town business. Sometimes articles suggested by individual townspeople will be included on the warning; otherwise, voters may petition to have articles added to the warning for consideration at the Town Meeting (as long as the subjects of the articles are not illegal, frivolous, or beyond the authority of the electorate). Petitions must be signed by five percent of the voters on the checklist, and the Town Clerk must receive petitions at least forty calendar days before Town Meeting.
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Town Meeting is a meeting of your neighbors. If you have a questions, just raise your hand and ask.
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A petition should begin with the statement, “We the undersigned voters of the town, hereby petition the Selectboard to add the following article to the warning for the annual meeting.” This statement should appear on each page of the petition.
Examples of articles that might be added to the warning by petition include a request for an appropriation for a social service organization, a proposal to change the size of the Selectboard, or a recommendation that budgets be voted by Australian ballot in the future. Petitions may also cover political subjects, but they must do so in an advisory way. For example, an article might suggest that the electorate urge the legislature to adopt or prohibit something, or send a message to the United Nations expressing its position on a particular issue. Do your research well, however, keeping in mind that there are some things voters simply do not have the authority to do.
Make sure your petition has a place for each voter’s signature, printed name and address. Get plenty of signatures (in addition to the minimum) to ensure that a sufficient number of names on your petition are legitimate voters.
Voting at Town Meeting
Three voting methods are used at Town Meeting. The most common is the voice vote. The moderator asks those in favor of the motion to say “aye” and then those opposed to say “no,” and then announces the outcome of the vote. Another version of this kind of voting is a show of hands by each side. If any voter disagrees with the moderator after the vote is announced, the voter may ask for a division or standing vote.
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Remember, Vermonters of all stripes have been participating in Town Meetings for well over two hundred years. You can, too.
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If seven or more voters disagree with the moderator after this vote is announced (or if they would prefer to begin the voting with a ballot vote), they may call for a paper ballot. Sometimes a checklist and a ballot box are used in this method; sometimes tellers simply collect the ballots and count them on a table in front of the room.
The Role of the Moderator
The Town Moderator is the presiding officer at Town Meetings, and thus is a very visible official. The Moderator keeps order, and ensures that the business of the meeting proceeds in a fair and efficient manner, and that those who wish have an opportunity to participate in the process. It is the Moderator’s job to put motions to a vote of the assembly, and to rule on all votes and other questions of order. The Moderator serves as the central, focal point of the meeting. All motions and remarks should be addressed to the Moderator, who has the right to order an unruly voter or visitor to the meeting to withdraw, on penalty of a $200 fine. The Moderator is the first official elected after the annual Town Meeting convenes, and serves a term of one year.
Other Business
State law explains that, “The article entitled ‘other business’ shall not be used for taking binding municipal action, and the moderator shall so rule.” Some moderators will not entertain any motion when the town gets to “other business” on the warning. Others may allow non-binding motions, such as a motion to recognize the hard work of Town Meeting organizers.
Excerpted from “The Meeting Will Come To Order,” distributed by the Vermont Institute for Government. (See Resources for Democracy)
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