SHUTESBURY — Special Town Meeting voters will consider changing the town clerk to an appointed position, rather than one elected by voters.
The meeting, set for Tuesday, Sept. 30, at 6:30 p.m. in the Shutesbury Elementary School gymnasium, was originally called to deal with a $124,000 increase in health insurance premiums. The town, like other members of the Hampshire County Group Insurance Trust, is facing a sizable jump in those costs, which will total $743,000 for fiscal year 2026.
The health insurance increase would be covered through various sources, including $61,500 from taxes, $12,500 from the Stabilization Fund and $50,000 that would come from reducing the town’s contribution to the Other Post-Employment Benefits Trust Fund.
The idea of having the town’s chief election officer be appointed comes after Town Clerk Grace Bannasch left for an appointed full-time position in Groton over the summer.
“We’re in a position where we could modernize, which would be a benefit to the town,” Town Administrator Hayley Bolton told the Selectboard at a recent meeting.
Bolton said her recommendation is to initiate the process under state law to create a position with enhanced accountability for elections and records. This may provide more stability to the role, would make it easier for succession planning and would make it a merit-based selection, rather than a popularity contest.
Bolton said that 117 of the 351 communities in Massachusetts have appointed clerks, up from 78 communities a decade ago.
On the other hand, an elected town clerk can be buffered from influence by the Selectboard and town administrator, and only answer to the voters.
Leverett Town Clerk Lisa Stratford is handling the responsibilities of the Shutesbury town clerk on an interim basis, likely until next spring’s town election. If Town Meeting voters approve the change on Tuesday, a successful ballot vote would be the required second step of the process.
Some of the warrant articles are related to salary adjustments the town is obligated to pay, including a $3,694 salary increase, to $75,217, for the superintendent of the Highway Department; a $1,015 salary increase, to $24,726, for the tax collector; and $3,000 to pay a stipend to the emergency management director.
Another article on the warrant would cover the $9.8 million for the Amherst-Pelham Regional Middle School roof, giving the go-ahead for the Massachusetts School Building Authority to award a grant to pay for almost 62% of the cost, with the remainder of the expense to be picked up by the four member towns of the region.
Annual Town Meeting could officially be set as the second Saturday of May, with the Selectboard having discretion to schedule a Special Town Meeting on a date in October. The suggestion for this warrant article came from Nettie Harrington Pangallo, the town moderator, after this year’s session lasted for more than eight hours. But the concept of continuing the annual meeting into the fall was not possible, according to an advisory from town attorney Donna MacNicol.
Other articles include reducing the Council on Aging from seven to five members, reversing the 2016 decision to expand that board; enacting a townwide speed limit of 25 mph, unless posted, which would ensure a lower speed limit for the town’s gravel roads; and putting a prohibition and moratorium on data centers, giving time for the Planning Board to develop a comprehensive bylaw for 2026.
To view the full 13-article warrant, visit tinyurl.com/ShutesburySTMSept30.