This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

The Public needs to be involved with the Charter Revision Process

The latest Bethel Charter Revision Commission was formed in 2012, charged with several specific requests by the Board of Selectmen. Having been appointed to this Commission, and as a minority member, I’m not authorized to speak on its behalf, so this editorial represents only my personal opinions and viewpoint.

 

During the course of 2013, we were to have had two regularly scheduled meetings per month (the schedule was voted on and approved in November, 2012).  To date, we would have had an opportunity to meet regularly twenty-two times this year. Yet, with many cancellations and reschedules, we’ve actually met only eight times so far, and with very little public participation or comments.

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Among the items debated include expansion of the Board of Selectmen to five people, each having four year terms (including the First Selectman). Other debate has ranged from changing the dollar amounts that would require a Special Town Meeting, elected vs. appointed positions, the merits of increasing the percentage of electors required for a people’s petition to hold a special Town Meeting or reject an ordinance, the role of the Board of Finance,  and other matters.

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These are important discussions! With the “devil being in the details”, we have not as yet voted on all of these important items. Moreover, we have absolutely no working  or partial pro-forma draft to vote on the potential legal details or changes to be eventually authored by counsel Nick Vitti.

 

The next scheduled meetings, per the minutes of November 18th (http://www.bethel-ct.gov/filestorage/1190/83/7085/7115/2013-11-18m.pdf), are December 9th,  final review on December 16th, and a January 6th (tentative) Public Hearing. These are prior to presenting our final draft  to the Board of Selectman on January 21st.  No regular or special meeting has been scheduled to make revisions between the Public Hearing and the presentation to the Board of Selectmen.

 

I find this unacceptable; eight out of twenty-two scheduled meetings, that we have no completed draft Charter to review, and we will be expected to vote on whatever counsel presents without adequate time for reasonable due diligence or discussion (in my opinion). When asked of the chair’s (Mr. Olson’s) plans to notify the public or issue a press release, the emailed reply to me indicated no plans whatsoever to exceed legal notification requirements.

 

Mr. Olson, I think the work of the Charter Revision Commission deserves more than just the minimum legal notification. On that we surely disagree, but you’re the Chair of the Commission, I’m just a minority member. It’s my personal hope this “opinion piece” will motivate a higher degree of public debate here, in the blogs, and about Town.

 

As I’m exercising my right to publish personal views and express my opinion as an individual citizen (not on behalf of the Commission), I think it would be wonderful to see many members of the public attend and comment at the few remaining meetings and at the Public Hearing. It’s Bethel’s Charter, the People need to be active now!




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