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Town Meetings Disappearing in the Lakes Region

August 18, 2009 - SEBAGO -- Sebago has joined the list of Lakes Region towns debating the future of the annual town meeting, marking the continuation of a small but growing statewide trend as local officials try to get citizens more involved in government.

In Sebago, where the town meeting draws 60-80 residents out of around 1,400, selectmen are researching a switch to a referendum-style town meeting, in which residents approve the budget at the ballot box rather than in an open forum, said Chairman Allen Crabtree. It is a conversation that has already occurred this year in Gray, Windham and Raymond. Gray voters will vote on the switch in November.

Those communities are following in the footsteps of other towns that have made the switch in recent years, said Michael Starn, director of communications and educational services at the Maine Municipal Association.

Around 20 Maine towns have moved to the referendum-style vote from the traditional open town meeting, a piece of New England history that predates Maine's birth as a state, said Starn. Of the towns that have switched, only three did so prior to 2000, he said. Most of the changes have occurred between 2004 and 2007, and most were done in order to get more participation from residents.

According to Starn and an assortment of town managers who have gone through a switch in town meeting style, a referendum does get more citizens involved. But it also makes it more difficult to explain to the public the matters up for a vote, since not all voters are in the audience as at a town meeting, and a greater burden is put on municipal officials to get information into the hands of residents.

"Referendum-style town meetings do get more participation," wrote Starn in an e-mail. "But, they also give up the opportunity for discussion and debate at the town meeting. Referendum-style town meetings are more costly and administratively complex. Defeated items have to be re-voted and it is sometimes difficult for the town officials to determine whether residents want to spend more or less on rejected budget articles."

Starn's comments, both on participation and the potential complexity of a referendum-style town meeting, are backed up by reports from the communities that have made a change.

In Monmouth, a town of just under 4,000, around 100 residents would typically attend an open town meeting. The referendums bring 500-700 people to the polls, said Town Manager Curt Lunt. The same scenario played out in Waldoboro and Jay as well, both of which see five or six times the number of residents cast a ballot on a referendum as at a town meeting.

But the towns have also encountered some bumps along the way.

In Monmouth, where the budget has been approved at the polls for five years now, town officials have seen the police budget shot down twice this year and are preparing for a third vote.

"You ask people afterward what happened, but you're never sure," said Lunt. "We've had difficulty trying to figure out why the police budget has gone down, whether it was because it was too high or because of attitudes toward the police."

Bill Post, town manager in Waldoboro, which voted to switch to a referendum-style town meeting in 2006, switched back to an open meeting in 2007, then reversed again in 2008, has been through the same experience.

"Open town meeting allows for debate and amendments to articles on the floor. Referendum voting does not," said Post. "This can lead to some confusion if an article does not pass because there is no way to know what the voters thoughts are in rejecting any particular question."

The key, said Post, is making sure the electorate understands the questions on the ballot when they come to vote. It is a task that bears heavily upon town officials, he said.

"Referendum voting takes more work on behalf of the town manager and
department heads simply because we do not have the opportunity to answer
questions on the floor at town meeting," said Post. "It is imperative that we get our
message out to the voters in some manner so that they are informed on the
proposed budget and other town meeting warrant questions, whether they are
ordinance revisions, or other questions of business."

To that end, Post sends out a quarterly newsletter to all residents. In addition, public hearings are held before the warrant is finalized for the referendum vote.

Ruth Marden, town manager in Jay, takes much the same approach. When an article raising money for an industrial assessment of Jay's mills failed five years ago, town officials figured it was because people did not fully understand the question, and they came back with a plan.

"What we did was mass education, and it passed the next time," she said.

The town holds two public hearings before the budget is finalized for a vote, one before the warrant is complete and one after, Marden said.

"Once in a while, I come across somebody who'll say, 'If there was an open town meeting, we could debate,'" said Marden. "My comeback is, that is why we have two public hearings."

But in order for that to work, Marden said, the town officials have to listen to the opinions of residents, and be willing to make changes to the budget as a result of the comments.

"You have to have an open board," she said.

Residents have to do their part as well.

"We want input from the community," said Marden. "The hearings are very poorly attended, but the opportunity is there if people have concerns."

Ultimately, she said, deciding on a form of government is up to the people, and the residents of Jay have decided year in and year out at the polls for a referendum.

"Every year, the last question is, "Do you want to continue with the referendum-style?" Marden said. "And, overwhelmingly, the answer is yes."

It is a question that will soon be facing voters in Gray. In Windham, town councilors tossed the idea aside after learning that a change must begin with a citizen's petition separate from the council, and in Raymond the discussion has not risen past idle comments.

In Sebago, it is a conversation worth having, said Crabtree, the chairman of the Board of Selectmen. It is a complicated issue, with arguments on each side, and the town will likely move slowly with any action, he said. The town officials want more people to get involved, but they also want them to have a voice.

"I guess I'm not ready to throw in the towel that we can't get more participation at our traditional town meeting," said Crabtree.

By Ben Bragdon | Posted: Thursday, August 13, 2009 www.keepmecurrent.com


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