[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Council of the Town of Braintree 5-18-2010 by Ord. No.
09-053. Amendments noted where applicable.]
A.Â
Standing multiple member bodies. This chapter describes all current
standing multiple member bodies of the Town. The Town Council may
establish additional standing multiple member bodies of the Town,
upon the request of the Mayor, by the enactment of an ordinance amending
this chapter and creating said standing multiple member body. All
ordinances establishing standing multiple member bodies shall specify
the following: membership, term of office, appointing authorities
and responsibilities.
B.Â
Committees of the Town Council. The Town Council may from time to
time, by vote, establish advisory multiple member bodies to assist
it in carrying out its legislative responsibilities. Whenever the
Town Council establishes such a committee it shall, in writing, advise
the Mayor it has done so, including in such notice the names and addresses
of the persons appointed.
C.Â
Committees of the Mayor. The Mayor may from time to time establish
advisory multiple member bodies to assist the office of the Mayor
in carrying out its executive and administrative responsibilities.
Whenever the Mayor establishes such a committee the office of the
Mayor shall, in writing, advise the Town Council it has done so, including
in such notice the names and residence addresses of the persons appointed,
for such action as the Town Council deems necessary or advisable in
accordance with Charter Section 2-10.
D.Â
Town residency required. Unless some other provision is made in a
general or special law, by Charter, or by ordinance, all members of
multiple members bodies shall at all times be residents of the Town
of Braintree; provided, however, that nonresidents who hold a Town
office or Town employment may serve as a member of a multiple member
body as a representative of the Town office or Town employment held.
Any person who during the term of office as a member of a multiple
member body removes from the Town and becomes a resident of another
municipality shall be deemed to have resigned as a member of the multiple
member body.
E.Â
Limitations of authority. Unless some other provision is made in
this chapter, a multiple member body shall not have any power or authority
over any of the day-to-day activities of the agency or department
within which it serves but shall be advisory only.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch.
1.10, Adoption of Code).
F.Â
Compensation. Unless some other provision is made in this chapter,
all members of multiple member bodies shall serve without compensation.
Subject to appropriation and to prior authorization by their appointing
authority, members of multiple member bodies may be reimbursed for
their actual and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of
their duties.
A.Â
Except as otherwise provided by these ordinances, as soon as possible
following the first day of business in each January, each multiple
member body shall elect from its membership a chair, vice chair and
clerk. Multiple member bodies may further elect a treasurer and such
other officer or officers as are deemed necessary or as may be required
by statute. Each multiple member body shall, forthwith following its
annual organization and election of officers, file a report in the
office of the Town Clerk on a form approved by the Town Clerk.
B.Â
The chair shall preside over all meetings of the multiple member
body and shall be its official representative in all proceedings before
the Town Council, with the Mayor, with other officials of the Town
and with the public. The vice chair shall perform the chair's
functions, in the absence of the chair.
C.Â
The clerk shall be responsible for the certification of the minutes
of the meetings of the multiple member body, observance of the Public
Records Law and the Open Meeting Law,[1] and maintenance of other records of the multiple member
body. In addition to the records required to be kept by MGL c. 66,
§ 5A, the clerk shall, quarterly, prepare a statistical
summary of the attendance record of each member of the multiple member
body, a copy of which shall be filed with the Town Clerk and a copy
of which shall be filed with the Mayor.
[1]
Editor's Note: See MGL c. 66, Public Records, and MGL c. 30A,
§§ 18 to 25.
The clerk of each multiple member body shall be responsible
for notifying the Town Clerk and the Mayor of the regularly scheduled
meetings and all special meetings. The notification shall also include
the location where each meeting will be held. The clerk shall also
file a notice of the time and place of each meeting with the Town
Clerk, who shall ensure posting of all meeting schedules, consistent
with the Open Meeting Law.
Each multiple member body may, by a majority vote of its membership,
establish a subcommittee for the purpose of addressing a particular
issue or issues. A report of the activities of any such subcommittee
shall regularly be made to the full multiple member body. Each subcommittee
so established shall observe laws relevant to the keeping of public
records, the Open Meeting Law, and any other laws as prescribed by
the Charter, by ordinance or by state law.
Copies of the minutes of all meetings of all multiple member
bodies shall be filed with the Town Clerk. The minutes of all executive
sessions of multiple member bodies shall be filed with the Town Clerk
as soon as possible following the date the minutes of those meetings
have been made public. This filing of minutes of meetings with the
Town Clerk is for the convenience of the public. Such filing shall
not be construed to be the official records of the multiple member
body. The official records shall continue to be maintained in the
custody of the person designated pursuant to MGL c. 66, § 6.
