2-1-1 The legislative powers of the Town shall be exercised by a Town Meeting open to all registered voters of the Town.
2-1-2 Persons other than legal voters shall be allowed to attend the Town Meeting, with the consent of the Moderator. A non-voter may speak after a favorable vote of the Town Meeting.
2-1-3 The quorum necessary for the conduct of Town Meeting business shall be two-hundred (200) of the current registered voters of the Town.
2-1-4 Any five or more voters may challenge the existence of a quorum. If the Moderator determines the number in attendance to be less than the established quorum, the Moderator shall adjourn the meeting to a stated date, time and place.
2-2-1 A Moderator, elected in accordance with Chapter 5, shall preside at all Town Meetings.
2-2-2 The Moderator shall enforce procedural rules in accordance with General Law, this Charter, and By-laws.
2-3-1 The Town Meeting shall consider and act upon all Warrant articles including proposed By-laws, all proposed operating and capital budgets, bond and borrowing issues or any other financial proposals, and all amendments to the aforesaid.
2-3-2 The Town Meeting may, through the Select Board or a duly constituted special committee, investigate the affairs of any Town department, multi-member body, office, or function. [Amended 5-13-2019 ATM, Art. 59, approved 6-23-2020 Annual Town Election, Question 5]
2-4-1 The Select Board shall prepare the Warrant for all Town Meetings, and by public notice posted on the town website and published in a news outlet of general circulation within the Town, shall advertise the date of the opening and closing of the Warrant for all Town Meetings. [Amended 5-13-2019 ATM, Art. 59, approved 6-23-2020 Annual Town Election, Question 5; 5-9-2022 ATM by Art. 53, approved 5-16-2023 Annual Town Meeting, Question 12]
2-4-2 The opening of the Warrant shall be no less than ninety days prior to the date of the Annual Town Meeting, and no less than sixty days prior to any Special Town Meeting unless otherwise required by General Laws Chapter 39, Section 10 as the same may be amended from time to time.[Amended 5-9-2022 ATM by Art. 53, approved 5-16-2023 Annual Town Meeting, Question 12]
2-4-3 The Warrant for the Annual Town Meeting shall remain open for no less than thirty days, and shall be closed at least sixty days prior to the date of the meeting. [Amended 5-9-2022 ATM by Art. 53, approved 5-16-2023 Annual Town Meeting, Question 12]
2-4-4 The Warrant for any Special Town Meeting shall remain open for no less than fifteen days, and shall be closed at least forty-five days prior to the date of the special meeting unless otherwise required by General Law Chapter 39, Section 10 as the same may be amended from time to time. [Amended 5-9-2022 ATM by Art. 53, approved 5-16-2023 Annual Town Meeting, Question 12]
2-4-5 By unanimous vote, the Select Board may waive the requirements contained in clause 2-4-4, in case of emergency. [Amended 5-13-2019 ATM, Art. 59, approved 6-23-2020 Annual Town Election, Question 5]
2-4-6 A notice of the availability of the Warrant shall be published in a news outlet of general circulation within the Town and the Warrant shall be posted on the Town Website at least 14 days prior to the Annual or any Special Town Meeting. The notice of availability and the posting on the Town Website shall include where printed copies of the Warrant are available. [Amended 5-9-2022 ATM by Art. 53, approved 5-16-2023 Annual Town Meeting, Question 12]
2-4-7 All said Warrants shall also be posted in every post office in the Town at least fourteen days prior to any such meeting and shall remain so posted until the date of the meeting. [Amended 5-9-2022 ATM by Art. 53, approved 5-16-2023 Annual Town Meeting, Question 12]
2-5-1 Except for operating expenses associated with any Enterprise Fund established pursuant to M.G.L. c. 44, § 53F 1/2, all proposed operating expenditures shall be included in a single, omnibus-type article in the Town Meeting Warrant. In addition, all regular proposed capital improvements expenditures shall also be included in an omnibus-type article in the Annual Town Meeting Warrant, devoted to capital expenditures. [Amended 10-29-2018 STM, Art. 10, effective 5-22-2019]
2-5-2 Articles calling for appropriation of funds may be considered at any Town Meeting, but only after review and comment by both the Select Board and the Finance Committee, acting separately at separate meetings. Except for the insertion of subjects in the Town Meeting Warrant by written request of registered voters pursuant to M.G.L. c39 sect. 10, articles that authorize capital expenditure or borrowing shall be in the printed Warrant only if a cost estimate and appropriate supporting data is included. [Amended 5-11-2015 ATM, Art. 42, effective 5-18-2016; 5-13-2019 ATM, Art. 59, approved 6-23-2020 Annual Town Election, Question 5]
2-6-1 By written petition to the Select Board, any ten voters of the Town may secure the inclusion of an article for the Warrant of the Annual Town Meeting, provided that such petition shall be submitted at least sixty calendar days in advance of the date of such meeting. [Amended 5-13-2019 ATM, Art. 59, approved 6-23-2020 Annual Town Election, Question 5]
2-6-2 By written petition to the Select Board, any one hundred voters may secure the inclusion of an article for the Warrant of any Special Town Meeting, provided that such petition shall be submitted at least forty-five calendar days in advance of the date of such special meeting unless otherwise required by General Law Chapter 39, Section 10 as the same may be amended from time to time. [Amended 5-13-2019 ATM, Art. 59, approved 6-23-2020 Annual Town Election, Question 5]
2-7-1 The Annual Town Meeting shall convene the Monday before the second Tuesday in May. A Special Town Meeting may be convened by the Select Board at any time. [Amended 5-13-2019 ATM, Art. 59, approved 6-23-2020 Annual Town Election, Question 5]
2-7-2 The order of consideration of the articles as printed in the Warrant may be changed only by a two-thirds vote of the Town Meeting. In preparing the Warrant under Clause 2-4-1, the Select Board may include in it a Consent Calendar listing articles which that Board deems non-controversial. In the event such a Consent Calendar is so included, a written request by five registered voters before the commencement of Town Meeting, or, afterward, an oral request by five registered voters prior to consideration of the Consent Calendar, shall remove a particular article from it. All remaining articles in the Consent Calendar shall then be voted upon by a single vote without debate. Removed articles shall be considered and acted upon immediately after consideration of the Consent Calendar, and in the order of their listing in the Consent Calendar. [Amended 5-11-2015 ATM, Art. 43, effective 5-18-2016; 5-13-2019 ATM, Art. 59, approved 6-23-2020 Annual Town Election, Question 5]
2-7-3 Town officers, members of multi-member bodies, department heads, or their duly designated representatives, shall attend any Town Meeting for the purpose of furnishing information when proposals affecting their particular office, multi-member body, or department are included in the Warrant.
2-7-4 Rules of parliamentary procedure in simplified form shall be prepared by the Town Clerk, in consultation with the Moderator, and shall be made available for distribution to all those requesting them, to new voters at the time of registration, and to those in attendance at all Town Meetings.
2-7-5 No person shall speak twice on the same question until all those wishing to speak thereon have done so, nor shall any person speak for more than five minutes at one time, except by permission of the Moderator, provided, however, that the restrictions shall apply neither to those persons required to be in attendance under provisions of 2-7-3, nor to those persons making the original motion or amendments thereto under the article. A motion to terminate debate requires a second, is not debatable and shall require a 2/3 majority to prevail. [Amended 5-11-2015 ATM, Art. 44, effective 5-18-2016]
2-7-6 The Select Board shall, by recorded vote, indicate its recommendations on all articles. In the event of a split vote, the Board shall supply its reasons, pro and con, in the Warrant, by flier distributed on the floor of the Town Meeting, or during discussion of the article at Town Meeting. [Amended 5-13-2019 ATM, Art. 59, approved 6-23-2020 Annual Town Election, Question 5; 5-9-2022 ATM by Art. 56, approved 5-16-2023 Annual Town Election, Question 15]
2-7-7 The Finance Committee shall, by recorded vote, indicate its recommendations on all articles having financial implications. In the event of a split vote, the Committee shall supply its reasons, pro and con, in the Warrant, by flier distributed on the floor of the Town Meeting, or during discussion of the article at Town Meeting. [Amended 5-9-2022 ATM by Art. 56, approved 5-16-2023 Annual Town Election, Question 15]
2-7-8 No motion, the effect of which would be to dissolve the Town Meeting, shall be in order until every article in the Warrant has been duly considered and acted upon. This requirement shall not preclude the postponement of consideration of any article to an adjournment of the meeting to a stated time and place. Provided further, that any reconsideration of a vote shall take place at the session it was voted, the intent being that a final vote taken at a Town Meeting shall not be reconsidered at a subsequent session of the same Town Meeting. [Amended 5-11-2015 ATM, Art. 45, effective 5-18-2016]
2-8-1 Motions intended to establish ad hoc committees shall include the name of the committee and its charge or mandate, its size and composition, duration, whether it shall be elected or appointed, and by what methods, and a date by which said committee is expected to present a progress or final report.
2-8-2 Unless the motion establishing any such committee shall name the members, provide for their election, or provide for a different appointive authority, all such committees shall be appointed by the Moderator.