Salem Observer : Salem, charter commission

Charter may oust budget group

Salem Editor — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 18:40:00 GMT

BY DERRICK PERKINS

Preliminary discussions over the role of a budget committee under any new form of town government have several members of the Charter Commission questioning the direction the panel has taken.

With the commission mulling the idea of putting an official ballot, town council style government before voters in March, a nonbinding motion to remove the institution of the budget committee from any future town charter passed on Thursday, Aug. 27. Though the motion will be revisited at the panel’s next meeting, commission member Stephen Campbell – who also holds a seat on the town’s Budget Committee – said he will not support a charter that does away with the committee.

One of the two members of the commission casting dissenting votes, Campbell said the move to relegate the committee to the trash bin did not come as a surprise to him.

“The majority of (the commission) wants to give more power to the Town Council than the selectmen currently have, and certainly not have to answer questions from a budget committee is one way of giving them more power,” Campbell said. “It’s part of what the majority wants. They’re taking power away from the voters. Whether you agree with it or disagree with it, the Budget Committee generates discussions. It brings out the information that wouldn’t come out in a selectmen’s meeting. It’s just one more way of giving the town council more power.”

According to Campbell, the town had been moving in the direction of giving more authority to the voters in recent years, opening up the seats on the planning and zoning boards as elected rather than appointed positions. Proposing and potentially adopting an official ballot, town council form of government flies in the face of that trend, Campbell said.

“When they took the vote to go forward with town council, official ballot idea, I told them I couldn’t support that. It’s just one aspect of taking power away from people. The whole town council takes power away from the people,” he said. “I’m campaigning against it.”

Selectman and commission member Patrick Hargreaves said he will be joining Campbell in writing a minority report when the panel puts its final recommendations before voters in March if the proposed charter embraces the town council idea.

“If they want to add more seats to the board of selectmen that’s OK, but not to go to a town council,” Hargreaves said. “I like my opinions. I like being able to stand in front of the boards and I like going to the town meeting. I like voicing my opinions.”

Commission Chairman Bob Campbell stressed that the vote to remove the budget committee was not final and that the issue would be revisited at the next meeting of the nine-member board on Sept. 17. Whether to include a budget committee or not in any proposed form of government for the town of Salem was just one in a list of questions the commission needs to answer, he said.

“It has to do with a lot of issues of how we are going to deal with the budget,” Campbell said. “We felt that those were related to a large degree and we needed to discuss them as a package ... I think the reason that we decided to put it off was because people felt there were other considerations that had to be linked with it. Whatever it was, it was not decisive and I wouldn’t want to convey the idea that it was decisive.”

Charter Commission studies possible new format for Salem government

Salem Editor — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 18:38:00 GMT

BY DERRICK PERKINS

The charter commission has begun looking at adopting a town council form of government, though Chairman Robert Campbell is quick to point out that nothing is set in stone.

Campbell said the ninemember commission has reached a tentative consensus to start moving in the direction of an official ballot town council.

What proposals would go before voters on the ballot, whether or not to retain a budget committee of some kind and what the overall budgeting process would be remain questions that the commission has yet to answer, according to Campbell.

“One has to make decisions as to what goes on the official ballot and there is a lot of flexibility there. We are trying to develop a consensus on a list of things that ought to go on the ballot,” Campbell said.

“We are looking at how we handle the budgeting process on the official ballot. There is a question of whether or not one would have an open meeting, such as official town meeting that includes an open session in February and another open session after the election in March. We’re looking at whether or not those would be a necessary or appropriate part of the process.”

Arthur Barnes, chairman of the Board of Selectmen and a member of the charter commission, believes that a town council form of government would make the budgeting process more efficient and flexible than it is currently.

According to Barnes, the current budgeting process is a months-long procedure that begins in August and ends around Thanksgiving. Barnes said the budget committee’s review of the town’s finances makes up about a month and a half of work onto the process.

“I have read through the charters in many of the towns in New Hampshire that have the town council, and I have come to realize that only a couple of them have a budget committee,” he said. “If you eliminate the budget committee, you streamline that down quite a bit.”

By giving the council both the legislative and executive powers, Barnes also believes the town can avoid having projects and proposals hijacked by an active minority within the community taking advantage of low turnouts at the town meeting and deliberative sessions.

“Under current system, a minority group can, with 25 signatures, bring forward a project and those people, if they show up at the second session, can sway the day because we only have 80 people show up. We would prevent that with a town council” he said. “Whether you want to call them the ‘vocal minority’ or ‘minority’ or whatever, we would at least have elected representatives making those decisions instead of a selfappointed group of representatives.”

A member of the Budget Committee as well as the charter commission, Stephen Campbell said he understands the concerns raised by other members of the commission – particularly the problem of lack of turnout at Salem’s deliberative sessions and town meeting – but concentrating power in the hands of even fewer people in the form of a town council made little sense to him.

“I always wanted to have more people involved, but instead of having all of this power being given to the town council, my solution is to put more on the ballot,” Campbell said. “I can’t agree with giving more power to the town council and taking power away from the people.”

Campbell said he was one of three members of the commission who voted against moving forward with the official ballot town council form of government.

The commission meets next on Thursday, Aug. 27. Any proposed changes to the town’s current charter will go before voters in March for final approval.

New chairman of Charter Commission has been there before

Salem Editor — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 18:15:00 GMT

BY DERRICK PERKINS

Robert Campbell is not new to writing town charters, an experience he believes will come in handy as the community’s Charter Commission moves forward.

Campbell, a former selectman and current member of the Planning Board, chaired the commission in the late ’90s that established the first town charter in Salem. Serving again as chairman of Salem’s newly elected nine-member charter commission, Campbell said the past experience had left him with a strong understanding of the state statutes regulating municipal government and an idea of how to produce a document that voters will accept at next year’s Town Meeting.

“I know what can be done, and one of the things that is important is to communicate what are the options. It isn’t the sort of thing where you can start out with a blank sheet of paper. The state gives us a restricted outline,” he said.

“One needs to have a little bit of discussion to find out what direction we’re going to go. We can’t be flailing around on six different possibilities for four months. We have to develop a consensus or majority of what people are going to support and then start fleshing it out.”

According to Campbell, the commission has a wide latitude on what changes to make in the town charter.

The commission could recommend minor tweaks to the current document or adopt one of six basic forms of municipal government in New Hampshire.

That could mean potentially turning from the town meeting and board of selectmen to a town council or city council.

At the moment, nothing is off the table, according to Campbell. The focus for the next month or so is on developing a majority within the commission on what direction they want to take the town charter, he said.

Campbell anticipates that much of the discussion will revolve around how much power voters should have in the future when it comes to the budget and other spending proposals.

“One of the patterns you’ll see, the people who are in government tend to want to have a council type of government that gives them the power to directly implement their programs. The people who are marginally on the outside want to say, ‘I don’t want to give them that power. I want to keep this to the voters,’” he said. “It’s that tension that is going to cause much of the discussion in the months ahead.”

The commission has roughly six months to review the current charter, study alternatives and take public input before turning out a rough draft of recommendations that will go before voters in March. Residents will have the final say on whether to accept the commission’s findings.

The key to gaining voter approval for any alterations to the town charter is to keep it simple, Campbell said.

“We have had a lot of charter commissions in Salem over the last 30 years or so. The commission about 10 years ago was the first people had approved,” he said.

Earlier proposed charters could run as long as 60 pages and were met with defeat. In the late ’90s, Campbell said his goal was to keep the document small enough to fit on a single sheet of paper. Short and simple is the way to go this time around as well, he said.

“It’s like the Constitution, it’s not every last policy and procedure,” Campbell said. “I’d like to gain enough consensus on the commission and in the community so that it will pass.”

New committee gets advice about state rules

Salem Editor — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 18:12:00 GMT

BY DERRICK PERKINS

The message members of the charter commission received from a representative of the local government center on July 9 was “curb your creativity.”

Attorney David Connell pointed to past attempts by towns and cities across the state to impose tax cap initiatives, term limits for elected officials and bring the school district in as a department of the municipal government as charter changes that have exceeded what is laid out in the state statutes and been subsequently struck down by the courts.

“Each of these cases where the court has struck down something in a charter, that was an opinion held by town council and reviewed by the attorney general and who both said it was OK. It’s far from clear even when you can hear from multiple people saying it’s OK,” Connell said. “A general observation is that the charter is not the place for detailed treatment of the structure of your future town government. That’s left for administrative code.”

Connell took questions from the nine-member commission on the different forms of municipal government available under state statute Thursday night, from a board of alderman and an elected mayor to a town council with an official ballot. Connell also ruled out any attempts by the commission to put both a proposal for a new charter on the March town meeting ballot and a series of amendments to the existing town charter.

“This commission as this commission has to present one document for a yes or no vote. It could contain any number of items which one at a time might be considered amendments,” he said. “While this commission is doing its task, the board of selectmen can say, ‘Let’s throw on (the ballot) a few amendments.’”

His presentation sparked a three-hour debate between members of the commission over how much power any future legislative body that might replace the existing board of selectmen would wield relative to the voters or other boards and committees.

Commission Chairman Robert Campbell, a former selectman and current member of the Planning Board, spoke favorably of the town potentially adopting a town council with an official ballot.

“The official ballot with a town council would provide the structure for a good transition. Some people are comfortable having some control via the ballot and others would like to see us move toward a council or city (form of government),” he said. “The variation that is possible with the assignment of legislative power to either the ballot or the council allows making both parts of that comfortable and allows for a transition over time by simple amendment without having to redo the charter.”

Stephen Campbell, a member of the Budget Committee, disagreed and said he would oppose any attempts to make it easier for big ticket spending items – like a new police station – to gain approval.

“I want the decision-making in as many hands as possible. I do believe in checks and balances. I might elect somebody who I think is a great person and I can’t get rid of them for three years because they either changed their mind or lied to me,” he said. “ There is no magic in a city council or a town council ... I can’t do anything about D.C. I can hardly do anything about Concord. The only place where I can do anything is here.”

With no final decision on what direction the commission will take in pursuing a new charter, members plan to narrow down their ideas for the panel’s next meeting on July 23.

Salem Charter Commission discusses voter involvement

Salem Editor — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 20:04:00 GMT

BY DERRICK PERKINS

The question of how to improve and possibly restructure municipal government while fostering a more active citizenry dominated a public discussion hosted by the Charter Commission on July 2.

The town’s newly formed commission took suggestions from about a dozen members of the public, listening to ideas including making it easier to pass big budget infrastructure items and increasing governmental transparency.

“I have seen this town grow from the time that the Market Basket supermarket was a cornfield. This town has really changed and grown by the topsy-turvy. It’s very discouraging to see that only 5 percent of our population is involved in the Town Meeting,” said Larry Levine. “That’s where I think the problems are, a lot of the decisions are made by just those few that attend the meetings.”

Levine spoke in favor of Salem adopting a different style of town government, switching from the Town Meeting to a town or city council. Allowing individuals with a greater grasp of the issues to make the decisions – rather than going before a Town Meeting for approval – would increase efficiency, he said.

Pamela Berry, a member of the School Board and a defeated candidate for the commission, said that elected officials for both the school district and the municipality currently spends too much time as “sales or marketing reps” when it comes to getting residents informed and involved for Town Meeting.

While she did not outline changes she would like to see the commission make in the way the town is governed – other than to keep the school district separate from any new form of municipal government – Berry did say the current charter forces officials to spend increasingly more time educating the public on the issues.

“I think we see less people less involved and less knowledgeable, but what we do see is more people voting. This charter committee needs to decide if the citizens of Salem are really participating in the government we have now,” Berry said.

Another defeated candidate for the commission, Tom Linehan, spoke out in favor of keeping the current twothirds super majority to pass bond issues.

“The people should decide the major issues, bond articles, contracts and anything that affects the long term … should probably be approved by a super majority,” he said. “It’s not just the people who are approving it at the time, they’re representing future generations and a simple majority is really not a fair way to do that.”

Linehan said Salem does not have a revenue stream problem, it has a spending problem. Switching to a different style of government would make it easier to spend, he told the commission.

Approved by voters in March, the commission has been charged with studying the town’s current form of municipal governance and recommending improvements, from changes to the town charter to overhauling the town government. Chairman Robert Campbell, also a member of the town’s planning board, said he planned on allowing residents to offer feedback through an online survey.

“We will provide continuing opportunities for input from (residents),” he said. “We will be filtering out some of these ideas and refining some of our direction. We want to hear from (residents) here … we will continue to seek (input).”

Recount leaves commission intact

Salem Editor — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 18:04:00 GMT

BY DERRICK PERKINS

A hand recount of the ballots from last month’s special election garnered Cathy Ann Stacey one extra vote, allowing her to retain her spot on the nine-member Charter Commission.

Rival candidate Pamela Berry, who challenged the election results after losing the ninth open seat on the commission to Stacey by a single vote, failed to pick up any new votes during the two hour recount at Town Hall on June 1.

The initial results from the May 19 special election left Stacey with 233 votes to Berry’s 232 out of 828 ballots cast by residents. On hand to observe the recount along with a number of volunteers, Stacey described the process as nerve-wracking, but said she was happy to have the matter settled.

“It was a win-win situation,” she said. “The quicker we get seated and working the better.”

Berry, a member of the school board, could not be reached for comment.

Roughly 25 poll workers volunteered their time to administer the recount, which was based on the procedures outlined by Deputy Secretary of State David Scanlon, according to Town Moderator Chris Goodnow.

Though a few ballots were discarded, Goodnow said that the recount did not have an impact on any of the candidates elected to the commission.

A single ballot was challenged by one of the observers at the recount, but all of the parties involved were satisfied by the Board of Recount’s ruling, according to Goodnow.

He praised the outcome as a validation of the town’s election process. With the recount now finished, he said the election results were settled and could not be challenged further by any of the candidates.

Now town officials can begin planning for the commission’s first meeting, likely sometime early next week, according to Town Clerk Susan Wall.

Out of the 25 candidates that ran for one of the nine seats on the commission, many elected by voters have ties to the municipal government, including three selectmen, a member of the Budget Committee, a member of the Planning Board, the fire chief and the deputy police chief.

Voters gave town officials the approval to move ahead with the Charter Commission at the March Town Meeting. The members of the commission are tasked with studying ways to make the municipal government run more efficiently. Though recommendations made by the commission will ultimately go before voters for approval, the nine-member panel could pave the way for the adoption of a different form of municipal government.

Selectmen began moving toward the creation of a commission last fall after members of the now-defunct Charter Reform Committee, following a six-month study, told the board that the current town charter limited options for solutions to improve efficiency in the municipal government.

Known names take Charter Commission seats

Salem Editor — Wed, 20 May 2009 18:30:00 GMT

BY DERRICK PERKINS

Voters backed candidates with a background in local government for the Charter Commission, giving town employees and elected officials seats on the nine-member board on May 19.

The three members of the Board of Selectmen on the ballot, Patrick Hargreaves, Michael Lyons and Chairman Arthur Barnes, won their bids for a spot on the commission, along with longtime Budget Committee member Stephen Campbell and Robert Campbell, a member of the Planning Board.

Fire Chief Kevin Breen and Deputy Police Chief William Ganley were given the nod by residents at Tuesday’s polls.

Annette Cooke and Cathy Ann Stacey also took a seat each on the commission.

Approved in March by Town Meeting, the commission has been charged with making a range of potential recommendations to improve municipal government, from small changes to Salem’s charter to possibly replacing the Board of Selectmen with a town council.

The commission stems out of one of several recommendations the now defunct Charter Reform Committee gave selectmen last fall. Formed early in 2008 to study ways to make the municipal government more efficient, Committee Chairman Dan Norris told selectmen at the time that the current form of government had limited possible solutions.

With a population over 25,000, Salem is one of the largest communities in the state that retains the town meeting form of government.

Voters did not give the twothirds majority approval needed for the Canobie Phase II water and sewer project. Part of the project was in line to receive federal stimulus funds, but the tally of 508 for and 308 against was not enough to accept the deal.

The plan will not go forward at this time. Town officials will seek alternate funding to bring town water and sewer to the area.

Salem charter commission plans move ahead

Salem Editor — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 20:08:00 GMT

BY DERRICK PERKINS

Selectmen took another step toward making changes in the town’s form of government by making preparations for a May special election to determine the makeup of a charter commission.

Selectmen plan to officially set the date for the election – now tentatively schedule for May 26 – during a brief meeting on March 24. Candidates for the nine open positions on the commission are expected to begin filing for the election early in April.

Though the voting came down to the wire, residents gave selectmen permission to go ahead with the creation of the commission during last week’s elections.

The move may mean the end of the town’s current five-member Board of Selectmen, Town Meeting form of governance.

According to Town Manager Jonathan Sistare, the charter commission has several options to consider, including proposing Salem retain the annual Town Meeting for budgetary concerns while switching from a Board of Selectmen to a seven or nine person town council.

A second option could see the formation of a city council, which would bring an end to the institution of Town Meeting in Salem all together.

While the commission will have the authority to operate independently of the Board of Selectmen, any proposed changes to the town’s current charter will have to go before voters for approval at next year’s Town Meeting.

Though some selectmen have expressed reservations about the potential demise of the Town Meeting form of government in Salem, Sistare has been supportive of the commission as a periodic review of the town’s ability to govern effectively.

Communities that have changed as much as Salem has in the past 10 years should revisit their charter to ensure that the best type of government is in place to serve the needs of the residents, he said.

“Other towns turn toward town councils mostly because they can be more reactionary when there is a need to do so. They have an executive governing board’s powers and legislative powers,” Sistare said. “They can make changes quicker or just handle budgetary items. (For example) in response to the floods, if they need to appropriate more money they have a mechanism to do that instead of town meetings, which can be a bit cumbersome.”

Salem is the last remaining community with a population of more than 25,000 in the state to retain the Town Meeting form of government.

The move toward changing the town’s charter began picking up steam last year after selectmen authorized a charter reform commission to make suggestions on how the town could be governed more effectively.

Among other recommendations made to the board last September, the subcommittee proposed the creation of a charter commission, the first in 11 years.

One of three special elections to be held in the coming months, selectmen have estimated the price tag to be between $4,000 and $5,000, though the town is considering running a bare bones operation at the polling stations to minimize the overall cost.