Town of Millville, MA Chapter 30 Town Elections and Meetings

[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Meeting of the Town of Millville 5-13-2013 ATM by Art. 18. Amendments noted where applicable.]

§ 30-1 Annual Town Elections.

A. Town elections. The Annual Town Election shall be held on the first Monday in the month of April of each year.

B. Polls. The polls shall be opened and closed as stated in the Warrant as provided by the Board of Selectmen.

§ 30-2 Town Meetings.

A. Warrants for Town Meetings. The voters shall be notified of all Town Meetings, both Annual and Special, by posting attested copies of the Warrants in the post office of the Town, and at not less than two other public sites or places open to the public. Said posting shall occur at least 14 days before the day of both Special Town Meetings and Annual Town Meetings, and further notice may be given in such manner as the Selectmen may determine.

B. Initiation of Warrant articles. The Board of Selectmen shall receive all requests for submission of articles which are addressed to it which request submission of articles to the Town Meeting and which are filed by (1) any multiple-member body acting by a majority of its full membership; (2) any other person, persons or Town agency as may be authorized by bylaw. All requests shall be submitted in writing and in a standardized form as authorized by the Board of Selectmen, except that each request for a particular subject shall be submitted on a separate application. The Board of Selectmen is the final approving authority for articles to be placed on the Warrant, with the exception of Subsection C below.

C. Citizens' petition. Citizens may petition for articles to be placed on the Warrant by the submission of a request for submission of articles to the Board of Selectmen. Each submission must be submitted in writing and in a standardized form as authorized by the Board of Selectmen, except that each request for a particular subject shall be submitted on a separate application. Each submission must be accompanied by the signatures of 10 voters, for the Annual Town Meeting; and 100 voters for any Special Town Meeting. Any citizens' petition meeting the requirements of this subsection and Subsection D below shall be placed on the Warrant.

D. Time requirements. All submissions for articles to be placed on the Town Warrant must be received by the Board of Selectmen by the date of the closing of the Warrant as set by the Board of Selectmen.

E. The Moderator shall annually appoint a Deputy Moderator for a one-year term to commence on July 1. The Deputy Moderator shall preside in the absense of the Moderator, or when the Moderator recuses himself, or to assist the Moderator when the number in attendance or physical layout of the room(s) requires, in the judgment of the Moderator, an additional Moderator. In the absense of the Moderator or Deputy Moderator a temporary Moderator shall be elected from voters for that meeting only in accordance with General Laws Chapter 39, § 14.

[Added 11-30-2016 STM by Art. 5]

§ 30-3 Procedures.

A. Town Meetings. At all Town Meetings, 40 legal voters of the Town shall be necessary to constitute a quorum for the transaction of official business.

B. Articles. All articles in the Warrant shall be taken up in the order of their arrangement unless otherwise decided by a two-thirds vote of those voters present and voting.

C. Business. All business, except the election of officers and the determination of such matters as are by law required to be determined by ballot, shall be considered at the Annual Town Meeting the second Monday in May at 7:00 p.m. at a location within the Town of Millville as specified by the Board of Selectmen.

D. Motions. No motion, the effect of which would be to dissolve a Town Meeting, shall be in order until every article in the Warrant has been duly considered and acted upon, but this shall not preclude the postponement of action on, or the consideration of, any article to an adjournment of the meeting to a stated time.

E. Debate. When a question is under debate, no motion shall be received except a motion to adjourn, to lie on the table, the previous question to commit or to amend, to refer or to postpone to a day certain, or to postpone indefinitely, which several motions shall have precedence in the order in which they are presented.

F. Amendments. In case of motions to amend, or to fill in blanks, the one expressing the largest sum or the longest time shall be put first, and an affirmative vote thereon shall be a negative vote on any smaller sum or shorter time.

G. Reconsideration. No vote shall be reconsidered at the same meeting or at any adjournment thereof except within one hour of the adoption of such vote and then only upon a two-thirds vote of the voters present and voting.

H. Action. If, before action is taken on any article, seven voters request that the vote be by written ballot, the same shall be ordered, and the Moderator may direct that a checklist be used.

I. Nonvoters. Nonvoters shall be directed by the Moderator to locate in a separate area from the voters at any Town Meeting.

J. Conduct. The conduct of all Town Meetings, not especially provided by statute, bylaw, special act or any other authority appertaining, shall be determined by the Moderator in accordance with Town Meeting time.

K. Method of voting. The Moderator may conduct all votes requiring two-thirds majority by statute in the same manner in which the Moderator conducts the votes when a majority vote is required.