The Select Board shall appoint a Board of Assessment Review, Planning Board, Zoning Board of Appeals and any other boards as required by state statutes. All boards shall conduct their business in accordance with the rules set forth in this Charter. Members of boards required by law shall be registered voters of the Town of Ogunquit. No eligible member may serve on more than one required board simultaneously. Members of appointed boards, committees, commissions and task forces (hereafter referred to as boards), not required by law, shall be registered voters or property owners or fulltime residents of the Town of Ogunquit. Registered voters and property owners from adjacent municipalities may also be considered for the Select Board's approval of an appointment to an appointed board. Board members who are property owners or fulltime residents of Ogunquit or property owners of adjacent municipalities need not be U.S. citizens, residents of Maine, or 18 years old. Ogunquit registered voters, fulltime residents and/or residential property owners who comprise the respective board must be a majority, and one of whom must serve as the Chair. The Select Board may also create and appoint members to other Town boards as needed. Required, elected, and appointed Boards are as defined in Chart 1 as updated.
801.1 
The Select Board is responsible for each board's purpose (mandate) and direction. The intent of this section is to provide guidance to all official volunteer boards.
A. 
Organization.
1. 
All boards:
a. 
Shall operate under bylaws approved by the Select Board and updated as necessary;
b. 
Shall sign and commit to adhere to the Code of Ethics for boards as adopted by the Select Board at the beginning of each term or whenever changes are made to the Code of Ethics.
c. 
Shall annually elect a Chair and Vice Chair, and other officers as are necessary and required by their by-laws. The Chair or Vice Chair shall not serve simultaneously as a Chair or Vice Chair on any other board.
d. 
Shall hold meetings at regularly scheduled, or specially scheduled dates and times, in accordance with their bylaws, that are publicized by the Town in advance of all meetings; and
e. 
All meetings shall be open to the public.
2. 
Board Chairs:
a. 
Shall manage their group according to its by-laws, Select Board directives, Code of Ethics for boards and any applicable Town ordinances and state and federal laws;
b. 
Shall establish a meeting schedule and set their group's agenda;
c. 
Shall keep the Select Board, and any other necessary Town officials, apprised of its work;
d. 
Shall run orderly meetings, shall provide for recorded minutes if and whenever necessary, and shall review and approve minutes regularly;
e. 
Shall make themselves available, within reason, to the press;
f. 
Shall ensure their members receive proper training and understand their roles and responsibilities, including board conduct and conflict of interest parameters;
g. 
Shall work with the Select Board to advertise openings and recruit new members whenever a vacancy occurs; and
h. 
Shall welcome public comment at appropriate segments of their meetings.
B. 
Procedures.
1. 
Unless otherwise provided for in this Charter, Select Board rules, other board specific rules or other state statutes, boards shall follow the most recent edition of Robert's Rules of Order.
2. 
A member with a conflict of interest or the appearance of a conflict of interest (an appearance of a conflict exists when a reasonable person could conclude from the circumstances that participation would be perceived as inappropriate) shall disclose the interest and recuse themselves and shall move to the public section area until such time as the matter involving the conflict of interest is closed and the board is ready to move to the next item on the agenda. In no case shall a recused board member participate in an official capacity in discussion or deliberations regarding the matter as to which the member has been recused; however, such member may speak as a member of the public during that portion of the meeting when the public is being heard.
3. 
Effective with the Annual Town Meeting on June 8, 2021, term limits shall be established for all members of the Town of Ogunquit Planning Board. Term limits shall consist of two consecutive terms. Limits shall include any term or portion of a term of office greater than one year. An individual who is affected by the term limit restriction shall be eligible for appointment to the Planning Board once a one-year period has passed since the restriction took effect.
4. 
Remote participation in board meetings may be permitted in accordance with Title 1 M.R.S.A. § 403-B.
There shall be an elected Budget Review Committee with two appointed alternates to assist the Select Board with budgets and financial planning. The recommendations of the Budget Review Committee will be presented to the public at the Annual Town Meeting when any budget items are being presented for consideration by the voters. Members of said Committee shall be registered voters of the Town. The Budget Review Committee shall adopt such bylaws as it deems necessary.
802.1 
Appointment and terms. The Budget Review Committee consists of five members who shall be elected at the Annual Town Meeting. As vacancies occur when the terms of previously elected members end; those vacancies will be filled by election to a three-year term.
802.1A 
Term limits. Term limits shall be established for all elected members of the Town of Ogunquit Budget Review Committee. Term limits shall consist of two consecutive terms. Limits shall include any term or portion of a term of office greater than one year. An individual who is affected by the term limit restriction shall be eligible for election to the Budget Review Committee once a one-year period has passed since the restriction took effect.
802.2 
The Budget Review Committee will also have a first and a second alternate who are appointed for a one-year term by the Select Board, whose term will expire at the end of the fiscal year but who will continue to serve as a de facto member until a replacement is appointed.
802.3 
Filling of vacancies.
A. 
If for any reason a vacancy shall occur in the membership of the Budget Review Committee, the vacancy will be filled in the following manner:
1. 
In the event that the Select Board has previously appointed alternates to the Budget Review Committee, the first alternate will succeed to fill the vacancy, the second alternate will succeed to first alternate, and the Select Board will fill the second alternate vacancy by appointment.
2. 
In the event that no alternates have been appointed, the Select Board shall fill the vacancy by appointment.
3. 
The new Committee member will serve until there is either an Annual or Special Town Meeting. At such time there will be an election to fill the remainder of the original term.
B. 
Any such election shall be conducted in accordance with the statutes of the State of Maine. In the event that more than one position is to be filled by election, all positions shall be considered "at large," with the candidates receiving the highest vote totals elected to the longest terms.
C. 
In the event of a tied election result the Select Board shall schedule a special runoff election to be held within 60 days pursuant to Title 30-A M.R.S.A. § 2528(10).
At any time during a term, an appointed or elected municipal board official shall forfeit office by an affirmative vote of four Select Board members after notice and hearing for any of the following reasons:
803.1 
Violation of any express prohibition of the Town Charter or violation of the Code of Ethics as adopted by the Select Board.
803.2 
Conviction of a crime the conduct of which occurs during the member's term of office.
803.3 
A member of any board who has been absent for 20% of meetings during any six-month period shall be eligible for forfeiture of office after notice by Board Chair. The recording secretary shall be responsible for maintaining accurate attendance records.
Any elected officer or official may be recalled and removed from office by the registered voters of the Town as herein provide for:
a.
Failure to appropriately carry out duties and responsibilities of the office (such as failure to represent the will of the people of Ogunquit);
b.
Engaging in conduct which brings the office into disrepute;
c.
Engaging in conduct which displays an unfitness to hold the office; or
d.
For the indictment or conviction of a felony under the laws of the State of Maine or the laws of the United States, or the laws of any other state or nation, or entry of a plea of guilty or no-contest to such an offense.
804.1 
Petition for recall.
A. 
Any 50 registered voters of the Town may make and file with the Town Clerk an affidavit, with each signature notarized, containing the name of the officer or official whose removal is sought and a statement of the specific reason(s) why such removal is desired.
B. 
The Town Clerk shall then prepare and sign sufficient copies of a petition for removal.
C. 
The petition forms must meet the following requirements:
1. 
Each petition form must be signed by the Clerk;
2. 
Each petition form must have attached thereto a copy of the signed affidavit containing the name of the officer or official whose removal is sought and a statement of the specific reason(s) why such removal is desired;
3. 
Each petition form must have spaces for each voter signing the petition to affix their signature, print their name, print their physical address, and indicate the date; and
4. 
Each petition form must contain an affidavit to be executed by the circulator and attested by a notary, stating that the circulator personally circulated the petition form; that all signatures contained on the form were affixed in the circulator's presence; that the circulator believes them to be the genuine signatures of the registered voters whose names appear on the petition; and that each person signing the petition had the opportunity to read it before signing.
D. 
The Town Clerk or Deputy shall make available and safeguard one copy of the petition for 30 business days thereafter, during which time it shall be available for signatures, during regular business hours, of registered voters of the Town. The petition shall not be left unattended. Each signature on the copy of the petition at the Clerk's office shall be personally witnessed by the Clerk or Deputy, who shall then sign the circulator certification.
E. 
The Town Clerk shall make the remaining copies of the petition available for circulation and collection of signatures. Petition forms may be circulated by any registered voter of the Town. The Clerk shall prepare additional petitions for circulation, as necessary.
F. 
To be effective, the recall petition must be signed by the number of registered voters of the Town equal to at least 25% of the ballots cast in the last gubernatorial election and the signed petition must be delivered to the Clerk on or before the 30th business day after it was first issued by the Clerk.
G. 
Should fewer than 25% of the number of voters who participated in Ogunquit in the last gubernatorial election sign the petition or should the petition not be delivered to the Clerk within the time specified above, the petition shall have no further force or effect, and no new petition action for recall of the same person for the same specific reason(s) can be initiated until 180 days from the end of the previous filing period.
804.2 
Examination of petition.
A. 
At the expiration of the thirty-business-day period described above, the Town Clerk shall declare the petition closed and shall within five business days thereafter ascertain whether the petition is valid and shall attach thereto a certificate showing the results of such examination.
B. 
The Town Clerk shall verify the signatures of the required number of registered voters and certify all requirements have been met. The Town Clerk shall then allow five business days for the filing of legal challenges to the signatures on the petition. If a challenge is filed, the Clerk shall follow the procedures set forth in Title 21-A M.R.S.A. § 337 to consider and rule on the challenge.
C. 
If no such challenges are filed, or after the Clerk makes a decision on the challenge(s), the Town Clerk shall forthwith certify and submit the petition to the Select Board.
804.3 
Calling of recall election. The petition and the certificate shall be submitted to the Select Board at its next scheduled meeting. If the petition, certified by the Town Clerk, includes the requisite number of signatures, the officer whose removal is sought shall be notified. The Board shall thereupon, within 10 business days of receipt of the Town Clerk's certificate, order an election to be held not less than 45 calendar days, nor more than 60 calendar days thereafter; unless a regular election is to occur within 120 calendar days, in which case the recall election will be held concurrent with the regular election. The officer or official whose removal is being sought may request a public hearing by submitting a written request to the Select Board within 10 calendar days of the Town Clerk's certification. Unless the board member whose removal is sought shall have resigned within 10 days after the receipt by the Select Board of the Town Clerk's certificate, a ballot shall be prepared. Any elected officer or official against whom recall proceedings have been initiated may continue to hold office until recalled and shall have the privilege of seeking election to the same or any other office at any election after the date of recall.
804.4 
Form of ballot. The form of the ballot at the recall election shall be: "Shall [elected municipal officer or official shown on petition] be recalled?"
804.5 
Count of ballots. In the case that a plurality of those voting on the recall of any officer or official shall vote in favor of recall, that officer or official shall be removed immediately, and a vacancy shall be declared by the Town Clerk.
804.6 
Election by petition. If the Select Board, upon receipt of the petition, fails to call a Town Meeting for the purpose of a recall election, it may be called by a notary public in the county upon the written petition of a number of votes equal to at least 10% of the number of signatures on the certified petition.
804.7 
Candidates for recalled petition. In the event of a successful recall election, nominations for candidates shall be sought in the same manner as for any municipal election and in accordance with state and municipal election laws.