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10/30/2018 03:00 PMWith election day on Tuesday, Nov. 6, Clinton voters have a chance to not only make changes to the state government, but also potentially radical changes to the town’s government as well.
All Clinton voters vote at the Andrews Memorial Town Hall. Polls at are open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. For questions concerning registration status and polling place, call the Registrars of Voters at 860-669-6436.
A sample ballot with the complete list of candidates and ballot questions can be found above, and readers can find profiles on the candidates* along with letters to the editor at www.zip06.com/election.
State Questions
In addition to the candidates, the ballot will have for four yes or no questions for voters to consider.
Question 1 is: “Shall the Constitution of the State be amended to ensure (1) that all moneys contained in the Special Transportation Fund be used solely for transportation purposes, including the payment of debts of the state incurred for transportation purposes, and (2) that sources of funds deposited in the Special Transportation Fund be deposited in said fund as long as such sources are authorized by statute to be collected or received by the state?”
The Special Transportation Fund (STF) pays for all state transportation projects and is headed toward insolvency in the next few years. In theory, the lockbox would ensure all funds put into the STF be used only for transportation purposes, preventing the governor or General Assembly from raiding the fund for other purposes.
Question 2 is: “Shall the Constitution of the State be amended to require (1) a public hearing and the enactment of legislation limited in subject matter to the transfer, sale or disposition of state-owned or state-controlled real property or interests in real property in order for the General Assembly to require a state agency to sell, transfer or dispose of any real property or interest in real property that is under the custody or control of the agency, and (2) if such property is under the custody or control of the Department of Agriculture or the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, that such enactment of legislation be passed by two-thirds vote of the total membership of each house of the General Assembly?”
The question, if passed, would amend the state constitution by requiring the legislature to hold public hearing prior to a property transfer and set majority vote requirements, essentially limiting the legislatures ability to transfer property through legislation, known as “conveyance bills”, that can sidestep statutory procedures.
Charter Questions
Two of the questions, numbers three and four, concern potentially significant changes to the town’s government. The questions are: 3. Shall the Town of Clinton amend the Charter to adopt a Town Council and Town Manager form of government and associated amendments pursuant to the final report of the Charter Revision Commission dated Aug. 28, 2018, to be effective Nov. 19, 2019?
and
4. Shall the Town of Clinton retain the Board of Selectmen form of government and make the various amendments pursuant to the amended Charter for such form of government contained in the final report of the Charter Revision Commission dated Aug. 28, 2018, to be effective Nov. 19, 2019?
If question three were to pass, the town would transition to a town manager form of government in November 2019. Under a town manager form of government, a professional, accredited town manager answerable to a seven-member town council would act as the town’s chief executive, taking on many of the duties handled by the current first selectman. The elected town council would hire or fire the town manager.
If question four were to pass, the town would retain the current form of town government, but with substantial changes, such as prohibiting someone from serving on two elected positions concurrently, increasing the Board of Finance to seven members (it is currently a six-member board), and requiring that special appropriations of $300,000 or more, excluding emergency situations, be sent to referendum.
If neither question were to pass, the current government structure would remain in place.
For one of the proposed charters to pass, the majority of total voters will need to vote “Yes,” not simply a majority of votes.
For example, if 1,000 people vote in the election, and 500 people vote “Yes” on the first question, 499 people vote “Yes” on the second question, and one-person votes “No” on the second question, even though 999 people voted for changes to the charter, a majority of people did not vote for any one option, which means all of the proposed changes would fail.
*Candidates who have not yet participated in the guide should send an email with subject line “voter guide” to l.robida@shorepublishing.com ASAP.