2021-11-29 SB Packet - Released - Laserfiche WebLink

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Section 8. A vote passed at any representative town meeting authorizing the expenditure of twenty thousand dollars or more as a special appropriation, or establishing a new board or office or abolishing an o1d board or office or merging two or more boards or offices, or�'ixing the term of office of town officers, where such term is optional, or increasing or reducing the number of members of a board, or adopting a ne�v by-law, or amending an existing by-law, shall not be operative until after the expiration of five days, exclusive of Sundays and holidays, from the dissolution of the meeting. If, within said five days, a petition signed by not less than 3 per cent of the registered voters of the town, containing their names and addresses as they appear on the list of registered voters, is filed with the select board requesting that the question or questions involved in any such vote which has not become operative as aforesaid be submitted to the voters of the town at large, then the operation of such votes shall be further suspended pending its determination as hereinafter provided, and the select board, within 10 days after the filing of the petition, shall forthwith call a special ineeting for the purpose of presenting to the voters at large the question or questions so involved. All votes upon any questions so submitted shall be taken by ballot, and the check list shall be used in the several precinct meetings in the same inanner as in the election of town officers. The questions so submitted shall be determined by a majority vote of the registered voters of the town voting thereon, but no action of the representative town meeting shall be reversed unless at least twenty per cent of the registered voters shall vote to reverse the action. Each question so submitted shall be in the form of the following question, which shall be placed upon the official ballot: -"Shall the town vote to approve the action of the representative town meeting whereby it was voted (brief description of the substance of the vote)?" If such petition is not filed within the said period of five days, the vote of the representative town meeting shall become operative upon the expiration of the said period. (Amended by Chapter 108 of the Acts of 2008; Chapter 3 of the Acts of 2020)