Board of Elections supervisor urges shorter charter language, says operations details belong in procedures

At the public hearing on Charter Amendment Resolution 2-26, Claire Franchesay, a Board of Elections Supervisor for Ward 6 (speaker S5), advised the council that parts of the proposed amendment delve into execution and implementation details she believes should remain in the elections board's operations manual rather than the charter. "We think the language is a bit too long and especially the 2nd 0.5 goes into detail that's more about execution that we think is more for the Board and as for the Charter," she said.

Franchesay said the board held an open meeting earlier in the week and planned to provide suggested, shorter wording. She noted that the board meets regularly on the second Tuesday at 7 p.m. on Zoom and invited town counsel to attend so supervisors and counsel could reconcile the drafting approach. The supervisor emphasized that while the board can suggest language, drafting the charter text is not solely the board's responsibility.