[Amended 8-20-2020 by Ch. 167, Acts of 2020]
There shall be a town manager who shall be responsible for the coordination and direction of all administrative and financial affairs of the town.
The town manager shall be appointed by the select board from names submitted to it by a town manager screening committee which shall consist of 1 member of the select board, designated by it, 1 member of the school committee, designated by it, 1 member of the planning board, designated by it, 1 member of the finance committee designated by it and the town moderator, who shall serve as the chair and call all meetings of the town manager screening committee. Whenever the position of town manager shall be vacant, the town manager screening committee shall be convened and shall solicit candidates, review applications, interview and rate candidates and submit the names of qualified candidates to the select board who shall appoint a town manager only from the names so prepared and submitted to it.
The town manager shall be a person especially fitted by education, training and previous experience in public administration and finance to perform the duties of the office. The select board shall appoint the town manager to serve for an indefinite term and shall fix the compensation for such person, annually, within the amount appropriated by the town. The town manager shall be appointed solely on the basis of demonstrated executive and administrative qualifications with special emphasis on financial matters. The select board may enter into a contract of employment with the town manager over wages, hours, benefits and other conditions of employment but no such contract shall be deemed to prevent the removal of the town manager by a majority vote of the full select board. The town manager need not be a resident of the town or of the commonwealth. The town manager shall not have served in an elective or appointive office in the town government for at least 365 days prior to appointment. The town may, from time to time, establish by by-law, such additional qualifications as seem necessary and appropriate.
The town manager shall devote full time to the office and shall not hold any other public office, elective or appointive, nor engage in any other business, occupation or profession during such service, unless such action is approved in advance and in writing by the select board.
The select board shall provide for an annual review of the job performance of the town manager, which shall, at least in summary form, be a public record. Any vacancy in the office of the town manager shall be filled as soon as possible by the town manager screening committee and the select board. The select board shall appoint a qualified town administrative officer or employee as a temporary town manager to perform the duties of the office until a new town manager is appointed. Such temporary appointment may not exceed 90 days but 1 additional renewal may be voted by the select board not to exceed a second 90 days. Compensation for a temporary town manager shall be set by the select board.
[Amended 8-20-2020 by Ch. 167, Acts of 2020]
The town manager shall be the chief financial officer for all town agencies. The town manager shall be the chief administrative officer of the town, directly responsible to the select board for the administration of all town affairs for which the office of town manager is given responsibility by or under this charter. The powers and duties of the town manager shall include, but are not intended to be limited to, the following:
(a) 
to supervise, direct and be responsible for the efficient administration of all functions and activities for which the office of town manager is given authority, responsibility or control by this charter, by-law, by town meeting vote, vote of the select board, vote of the school committee, or otherwise;
(b) 
to structure, supervise, direct and be responsible for the efficient coordination of all of the fiscal and financial business of the town, including the school department, subject to the advice of the school committee and the select board;
(c) 
to: (i) recommend to the select board candidates to be appointed by the select board to the offices of the town treasurer and town collector, who may be the same individual; (ii) appoint candidates to be ratified by the select board to the offices of director of municipal finance, police chief, fire chief, director of the department of public works, council on aging director, animal control officer, building commissioner, inspector of wires and the plumbing inspector; (iii) appoint candidates to be ratified by the board of assessors to the office of professional assessor; (iv) appoint candidates to be ratified by the planning board to the office of planning director; and (v) appoint candidates to be ratified by the board of sewer commissioners to the office of sewer business manager; provided, however, that this section shall apply to the appointment of any person under any other title who will perform, as the result of any reorganization of the administrative structure of the town, substantially similar duties as the officers named in this section.
(d) 
to appoint, and in appropriate circumstances to remove, subject to the provisions of the town personnel by-law, civil service law and any collective bargaining agreements as may be applicable, all department heads, officers, members of boards and commissions and employees for whom no other method of selection is provided by this charter; provided, that such appointments shall become effective on the fifteenth day following the day on which notice of the appointment is filed with the select board, unless the select board shall, within that period by a majority of all of its members, vote to reject such appointment, or has sooner voted to ratify it; and provided, further, that copies of the notices of all such proposed appointments shall be posted on the town bulletin board when submitted to the select board;
(e) 
to be, in conjunction with a personnel board established by by-law, entrusted with the administration of a town personnel system, including, but not limited to personnel policies and practices, rules and regulations, including provisions for an annual employee performance review, personnel by-law and collective bargaining agreements entered into by the town; and to prepare and keep current a plan establishing the personnel staffing requirements for each town agency, unless some other provision is made by law, except the school department;
(f) 
to attend all regular and special meetings of the select board, unless unavailable for reasonable cause, and shall have a voice, but no vote, in all of its proceedings;
(g) 
to assure that full and complete records of the financial and administrative activities of the town are kept and to render as often as may be required by the select board, but not less than once in each year, a full report of all town administrative and financial operations during the period reported on, which report shall be made available to the public; and, at the first session of the annual town meeting, to give an oral report summarizing the financial condition of the town and recommending strategies to be followed during said meeting to enhance the fiscal condition of the town;
(h) 
to keep the select board fully advised as to the needs of the town and shall recommend to the select board and to other elected town officers and agencies for adoption such measures requiring action by them or by the town meeting as the town manager may deem necessary or expedient;
(i) 
to have full jurisdiction over the rental and use of all town facilities and property except property under the control of the school committee and the conservation commission; and shall be responsible for the maintenance and repair of all town buildings and facilities placed under his control by this charter, by-law, vote of the town or otherwise;
(j) 
to prepare and present, in the manner provided in article 6, an annual operating budget for the town and a proposed capital outlay program for the following 5 fiscal years;
(k) 
to assure that a full and complete inventory of all property of the town, both real and personal, is kept, including all property under the jurisdiction of the school committee;
(l) 
to negotiate all contracts involving any subject within the jurisdiction of the office of town manager, including contracts with town employees and bargaining units subject to ratification by the select board, except employees of the school department, involving wages, hours and other terms and conditions of employment;
(m) 
to be the chief procurement officer of the town, responsible for procuring all services, supplies, material and equipment for all departments and activities of the town in the manner provided in the General Laws and shall have all the powers given to purchasing agents by the General Laws; and shall examine, or cause to be examined, the quantity, quality and condition of all supplies, material and equipment delivered to or received by any town agency; and shall be responsible for the disposal of all supplies, material and equipment declared surplus by any town agency;
(n) 
to see that all of the provisions of the General Laws, this charter, the town by-laws and other votes of the town meeting which require enforcement by the town manager, or officers subject to the direction and supervision of the town manager, are faithfully executed, performed or otherwise carried out;
(o) 
to inquire, at any time, into the conduct of office or performance of duties of any officer or employee, department, board, commission or other town agency;
(p) 
to attend all sessions of all town meetings and answer all questions raised by voters which relate to warrant articles and to matters over which the town manager exercises any supervision;
(q) 
to reorganize, consolidate or abolish, in the manner provided in article 5, town agencies serving under the supervision of the town manager, in whole or in part, provide for new town agencies and provide for a reassignment of powers, duties and responsibilities among such agencies so established or existing;
(r) 
to coordinate the activities of all town agencies serving under the office of town manager and the office of select board with those under the control of other officers and multiple member bodies elected directly by the voters; provided, however, that for this purpose, the town manager shall have authority to require the persons so elected, or their representatives, to meet with the town manager, at reasonable times, for the purpose of effecting coordination and cooperation among all agencies of the town;
(s) 
to prepare and maintain long-term financial forecasts, including revenue expectations, future implications of operating budget program decisions and capital budget programs related to infrastructure maintenance, improvement and expansion; and
(t) 
to perform any other duties as are required to be performed by the town manager by town by-laws, the votes of the town meeting, or the votes of the select board.
The town manager may authorize any subordinate officer or employee to exercise any power or perform any function or duty which is assigned to the office of town manager; provided, however, that all acts performed under any such delegation shall at all times be deemed to be the acts of the town manager.
[Amended 8-20-2020 by Ch. 167, Acts of 2020]
(a) 
Temporary Absence - By letter filed with the town clerk, the town manager shall designate a qualified town administrative officer or employee to exercise the powers and perform the duties of town manager during a temporary absence. During a temporary absence, the select board may not revoke such designation until at least 10 working days have elapsed, whereupon the select board may appoint another qualified town administrative officer or employee to serve until the town manager shall return.
(b) 
Unplanned Temporary Absence - In the event of an emergency absence, the select board may appoint a qualified town administrative officer or employee to serve until the town manager shall return or the office is declared vacant.
(c) 
Vacancy - Any vacancy in the office of town manager shall be filled as soon as possible by the select board, but, pending such regular appointment, the select board shall appoint a qualified town administrative officer or employee to perform the duties of the office on an acting basis.
[Amended 8-20-2020 by Ch. 167, Acts of 2020]
The select board may, by a majority vote of the full select board, terminate and remove, or suspend, the town manager from office in accordance with the following procedure under this section.
(a) 
The select board shall adopt a preliminary resolution of removal by the affirmative vote of a majority of all its members which must state the reason or reasons for removal. This preliminary resolution may suspend the town manager for a period not to exceed 45 days. A copy of the resolution shall be delivered forthwith to the town manager.
(b) 
Within 5 days after receipt of the preliminary resolution, the town manager may request a public hearing by filing a written request for the hearing with the select board as well as the town clerk who shall immediately notify the moderator. The hearing shall be held at a meeting of the appointing authority called by the town moderator not later than 30 days, nor earlier than 20 days after the request is filed. The town moderator shall preside over the hearing. The town manager may file a written statement responding to the reasons for removal stated in the resolution of removal provided the same is received by the town moderator not less than 48 weekday hours in advance of the public hearing. At any such hearing, the reason for the removal shall first be read aloud. The town manager shall then have the right to respond, either personally or through counsel. The select board and the town manager shall have the right to call and cross-examine witnesses and to subpoena any town records.
(c) 
The select board may adopt a final resolution of removal, which may be made effective immediately, by affirmative vote of a majority of all of its members at any time after 10 days following the date of delivery of a copy of the preliminary resolution to the town manager, if the town manager has not requested a public hearing, or, any time after the public hearing if the town manager has requested one. The town manager shall continue to receive a salary until the effective date of a final resolution of removal. The action of the select board in suspending or removing the town manager shall be final, it being the intention of this provision to vest all authority and fix all responsibility for such suspension or removal solely in the select board.