ERVING — A town budget of about $10.4 million and a proposal to change the name of the Board of Selectmen are among the decisions to be made at Annual Town Meeting on Saturday.
The 29-article warrant also includes a handful of articles to change rules on holding Town Meeting and elections, particularly having to do with the dates of the Annual Town Meeting and annual town election, posting warrants online, quorum rules and the timing of when newly elected officials take office.
Annual Town Meeting will start at 10 a.m. on Saturday, outside Erving Elementary School.
Of the roughly $10.4 million budget, the greatest parts are a general operating budget of about $4.8 million, and $3.3 million for Erving Elementary School.
Although the fiscal year began on July 1, Administrative Coordinator Bryan Smith said Erving has been working without a budget and spending at a deficit, per state laws that were passed to help towns continue to operate in cases where the pandemic has prevented them from establishing an annual budget in time for the new fiscal year. Therefore, he explained the budget numbers proposed in the warrant articles will not need to be amended at Town Meeting.
The proposed capital budget — $609,000 out of the $10.4 million — has not been reduced. While some towns have scaled back their capital improvement plans, citing the economic uncertainty of the pandemic, Smith said Erving has opted to wait for specific guidance from the state on how state aid to the town may be reduced.
“We are going to have to see what the specific changes are and how big the ramifications are,” he said.
He also noted that approving the capital budget does not necessarily bind the town to proceeding with all listed projects this year.
Changing the name of the “Board of Selectmen” to the “Selectboard” is a multi-part legislative process that will take a year or longer. The Town Meeting warrant article would petition state lawmakers for special legislation to change the name of the board.
The current Selectboard has acknowledged the historical use of the term “Board of Selectmen,” but still determined it was not fully inclusive of all people who have served or may serve on the board.
At the soonest, Smith said, the new law could be in place in time for next year’s Annual Town Meeting to vote on a new set of bylaws, which would reflect the new terminology.
The proposed new rules on Town Meeting and elections would change the date of each, and delay the start dates of newly elected officials.
Annual Town Meeting has traditionally been the first Wednesday in May, Smith said. The annual town election is usually the following Monday.
The proposed new rules, however, would put Annual Town Meeting on the second Wednesday of May, and the town election on the first Monday of May.
Newly elected officials wouldn’t start their terms until July 1 under the proposed new rules. According to Smith, this guarantees that the officials who designed the budget and warrant can be present at the Annual Town Meeting, and also allows for a transitional period, in which the outgoing official can help to orient the new one.
The rules, if approved, would also guarantee that the Town Meeting warrant is posted on the town website, in addition to the legally designated physical locations. The town already posts warrants online, but it is done as a courtesy, and is not legally required, Smith said.
The new rule on the Town Meeting quorum would allow the town moderator to continue holding the meeting even if people leave during the meeting so that the quorum number is no longer met. Smith said this can be helpful in cases where one or a few warrant articles draw more interest than the others, and voters leave after a particular article has been voted.
To view the full warrant, visit bit.ly/31VfCwf.
Reach Max Marcus at mmarcus@recorder.com or 413-930-4231.