Charter Revision Commission Meeting
Regular Meeting
Tuesday, July 24, 2007

Present: Richard Murphy, Carl Fitzgibbons, Joseph Amend, Brian Gouin, Sharon Scaramella, Dorothy DiPiro, Susan Malecky
Others: Attorney Steve Mednick

1. Chairman Call Meeting to Order
Chairman Murphy called the meeting to order at 6:35 pm.

2. Accept Agenda
Carl Fitzgibbons made a motion to accept the agenda, seconded by Brian Gouin. Vote unanimous, motion carried.

3. Accept Minutes 7-10-07
Brian Gouin made a motion to accept the minutes of the July 10, 2007, seconded by Joseph Amend. Vote unanimous, motion carried.

4. Public Comment none

5. Other Business none

6. Discuss / Review Charter (ongoing)
Commission members continued their discussion and review of the Charter, beginning with section 4.4. Notes in the draft that are not part of the charter will be removed, except where they refer to recodification.

Section 4.4-1: no changes
Section 4.4-1 (e) (2): This section will be revisited at the next regular meeting.
Section 4.5-2 (c) is revised to read as follows:
After holding the final such public hearing, the Board of Selectmen shall approve proposed changes to the General Fund Budget, if any, and file the same with the Town Clerk for submission to the General Fund Budget Meeting Referendum
Section 4.6-2 is revised to read as follows:
At least five (5) days prior to the scheduled referendum the Board of Selectmen shall make copies of the General Fund Budget Document available for distribution in accordance with the provisions of the Freedom of Information laws of the State of Connecticut.
Section 4-6.2(b) is revised to read as follows:
b) The provisions of this section are intended to establish a minimum standard and shall not preclude either the Board of Selectmen or the Board of Education from providing more extensive disclosure, including but not limited to publishing summaries in local newspapers or posting to the Town's web site.
Section 4.6-3: no changes
Section 4-7 (a) is revised to read as follows:
If the budget is approved by a majority of voters at any General Fund Budget Referendum, provided that at least five percent 5% of the total qualified electors of the Town, as determined from the latest official lists of the Registrars of Voters shall have voted, the budget shall be deemed approved and a copy or summary copy of the approved budget shall be filed with the Town Clerk within one week after the Referendum.

Section 4-8 (a) (2) is revised to read as follows: [special meeting is changed to public hearing]
(2) hold at least one (1) public hearing prior to submitting the revised budget for consideration
Section 4-8(a) (2) (ii) is revised to read as follows:
ii. The meeting shall follow the same procedures and format as prescribed for Public Hearings in Chapter 3 of this Charter.
Section 4.8 (a) (3) is revised to read as follows:
automatically submit the revised budget to referendum not earlier than seven (7) days nor later than fourteen (14) days following the date the initial budget was defeated at referendum;
Section 4.9 (a) add 's' to Section to read 'Sections'
Section 4.9(b) is revised to read as follows:
b) Expenditures prior to the final adoption of the General Fund Operating Budget shall be governed by the provisions of Section 7-405 of C.G.S.

Chairman Murphy set the regular meetings for the Charter Revision Commission as follows:

July 31, 2007
August 7, 2007
August 14, 2007
August 21, 2007
August 28, 2007

All meetings will be held at the Senior Center and will start at 6:30 pm.

7. Adjourn
There was a motion to adjourn the meeting by Brian Gouin, seconded by Joseph Amend. Vote unanimous, motion carried. The meeting was adjourned at 8:00 pm.

Respectfully Submitted,

Laura Siena
Board Clerk