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Duties of the Board of Selectmen in Westborough, Massachusetts
Authored by Selectman Timothy A. Dodd

February 16, 2008

I. History of the Board of Selectmen

When communities first began to develop in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, they had no regularly elected town officials. Instead, Town meetings would “select” citizens to perform the business of the town. Beginning with Dorchester in 1633, Towns gradually began to elect “selectmen” to serve for fixed terms. While the powers and duties varied from town to town, selectmen were required to carry out and enforce votes of town meeting, and were eventually granted additional administrative authority. As Massachusetts grew, activities of towns expanded and became increasingly complex. Currently, the Massachusetts General Laws authorize town to elect boards of three or five selectmen, at an at-large basis, for terms of one or three years. Towns in Massachusetts have either “weak” or strong Boards of Selectmen. A “weak” system is characterized by a long local ballot for the election of many town officers and boards which are responsible directly to the local voters, and are independent of BOS supervision. In “strong” systems, the selectmen, school committee, and a few other executive officers and boards are elected by the voters, while most major administrative officials are appointed by the board of selectmen, or by the town’s professional administrator.

II. General Overview of the Authority of the Board of Selectmen

The chief executive authority of the Town of Westborough is vested in the five-member Board of Selectmen. Each Selectman is elected independently in May to staggered three year terms. While the Board maintains a full-time office staff, including a Town Coordinator, the Board retains considerable authority on all executive matters. This includes serving as the appointment authority to various department heads, boards and commissions, setting policies, setting the Town Meeting Warrant, and being responsible for town land holdings and purchases. To carry out its functions, the Board meets biweekly, and as needed additionally, on Tuesdays at 7:00PM in the Town Hall.

III. Legal Duties of the Board of Selectmen

The Board of Selectmen’s legal duties are included in hundreds of state statutes, as well as Westborough’s Town Charter and bylaws. While these responsibilities vary from town to town, in Westborough, the Board of Selectmen has the following legal authorities:

• • Power to prepare the Annual Town Meeting Warrant
• • Power to make appointments to boards and offices
• • Power to employ professional administrative staff
• • Power to sign warrants for the payment of town bills
• • Authority to grand licenses and permits

A. Appointment Authority

The Board of Selectmen serves as the appointing authority for several boards, committees, and commissions, as well as several department heads. In 2008, the Board adopted a liaison program to improve communication between the Board and the committees that it appoints. Through this program, individual Selectmen serve as non-voting liaisons to various committees.

The Board also serves as the appointing authority for various town department heads, including the Town Coordinator, Animal Control Officer, Department of Public Works Manager, Town Counsel, Police Chief, Fire Chief, Town Accountant, and Treasurer/Collector. Department heads regularly attend meetings of the Board of Selectmen and share their concerns on particular issues. The Board conducts evaluations of these department heads each year.

B. Town Meeting Duties

The Board of Selectmen is charged with calling elections and town meetings, as well as publishing warrants. While the Advisory Finance Committee, appointed by the Moderator, play an active role in examining the warrant and making recommendations on each article, the Board of Selectmen will also make recommendations on each warrant article.

C. Employment of Administrative Staff

With a budget of over 80 million dollars and 800 employees (including the school system), the complexity of running the Town of Westborough requires the support of a professional administrator. In Westborough, the Town Coordinator is appointed by the Board of Selectmen and serves as the town’s Chief Administrative Officer. He/She attends all Board of Selectmen meetings and assists Selectmen as needed.

D. Authority to Sign Warrants for the Payment of Town Bills

The Town Treasurer/Collector may not issue checks without a majority vote of the Board of Selectmen to sign a warrant of authorization. Each Tuesday, Selectmen regularly sign the pay warrants for all town officials.

E. Granting Licenses and Permits

The Board of Selectmen serves as the local licensing authority. To this end, the Board issues a variety of licenses and permits for a variety of activities, including the sale of alcoholic beverages, entertainment, lodging houses, blasting operations, automobile dealers, parking lots, storage and sale of gasoline, restaurants, and other purposes.

IV. Public Decision Making

All decisions made by the Board of Selectmen are made in public. Typically, the Board meets at 7:00PM on the second and fourth Tuesdays of every month in the Board of Selectmen Office at Westborough Town Hall.

A. Open Meetings

The Board of Selectmen operates in the public light, and they are typically available on cable access TV. Like all other town committees, the Board of Selectmen is charged with following the Open Meeting Law, which is based on the premise that the public is entitled to see the process of government, and not simply its result. All newly elected Selectmen are given a copy of the Open Meeting Law by the Town Clerk, and they are required to sign a statement acknowledging receipt of it.

B. Role of the Chair

At its first meeting after the Annual Town Election in May, the Board of Selectmen meets for the purposes of reorganization, during which the Board elects a new Chairman and Vice Chairman. The Chairperson prepares the agenda, calls the items, and recognizes others to speak.

C. Executive Session

There are several instances when the Board operates in executive session. Executive sessions may only be held for one of the following reasons:

• • To discuss the reputation and character, physical condition, or mental health of an individual. Professional competence alone is not a basis for an executive session.
• • To consider the discipline or dismissal of, or to hear complaints or charges brought against, a public officer, employee, staff member, or individual.
• • To discuss strategy with respect to collective bargaining or litigation
• • To discus the deployment of security personnel or devices
• • To investigate charges of criminal misconduct or to discuss the filling of criminal complaints
• • To consider the purchase, exchange, lease or value of real property, if such discussions may have a detrimental effect on the negotiating position of the governmental body.
• • To comply with the provisions of any general or special law or federal grant-in-aid requirements.
• • To hold an initial screening of candidates for employment, if an open meeting would have a detrimental effect on obtaining qualified candidates.
• • To meet with a mediator regarding any litigation or decision. Before meeting in executive session, the following things must

happen:

• • The Board must convene in open session, for which notice has been given.
• • The chair must announce the purpose of the executive session.
• • A majority of members must vote to go into executive session, and the vote of each member must be a roll call, recorded in the minutes.
• • The chair must announce whether the meeting will reconvene in open session.
• • Votes taken in executive session must be recorded in roll call votes.

D. Correspondence

The Board of Selectmen encourages correspondence from members of the public through several different means. First and foremost, citizens are encouraged to attend the “Open Forum” portion of the meeting, where citizens can speak about issues of concern. Citizens who are interested in speaking during Open Forum are encouraged to contact the Board’s Chairman and/or the Board of Selectmen Office prior to speaking.

Towards the end of the meeting, individual Selectmen share specific issues that they have received from townspeople during the “Issues and Correspondence of the Selectmen” section of the agenda. Townspeople are encouraged to share their concerns with Selectmen by contacting them individually or through the Board’s office.

E. Records of the Meeting

All meetings are recorded by the Board’s administrative assistant.

Minutes are later approved by the Board, and are typically available online, in the Board of Selectmen’s Office, and in the Town Clerk’s Office. Meetings are also often available for viewing on Westborough Public Access Channel 12.

Sources

Westborough Town Charter

Handbook for Massachusetts Selectmen: Massachusetts Municipal Association (1998)

Selectmen’s Duties, as Defined by State Law

Following is a listing of state statutes describing the detailed powers and duties of the Board of Selectmen, acting as the chief executive board of the town. To read these laws please visit the Massachusetts State Website which provides an online catalog of Massachusetts General Laws (MGL), by Chapter (C) and Section (s/§).

M.G.L.c.40, §2 Agents for Legal Actions

M.G.L.c.40, §3 Custodians of Town Property

M.G.L.c.82, §38 Layout Public Way

M.G.L.c.40, §14 Eminent Domain Takings

M.G.L.c.79, §7 Award Damages in Private Takings

M.G.L.c.79, §42 Structures in a Public Way

M.G.L.c.40, §4 Contracting Authority

M.G.L.c.42, §2 Locate Boundary Markers

M.G.L.c.9, §7 Create a Census

M.G.L.c.40, §49 Create an Annual Town Report

M.G.L.c.40, §19 Emergency Authority

M.G.L.c.233, §8 Summon Witnesses

M.G.L.c.41, §23B Investigate Any Department

M.G.L.c.41, §1 Appointing Authority

M.G.L.c.41, §55 Appoint Accountant

M.G.L.c.115, §3 Appoint Veterans’ Agent

M.G.L.c.51, §15 Appoint Registrar

M.G.L.c.54, §12 Appoint Warden and Election Officers

M.G.L.c.41 Appoint Police, Fire, Counsel, etc.

M.G.L.c.140, §2 Licensing Authority - Common Victualler

M.G.L.c.138 Licensing Authority - Liquor

M.G.L.c.140 Licensing Authority - Automobile Dealers, Junk Dealers,Entertainment, etc.

M.G.L.c.148, §13 Storage of Explosives

M.G.L.c.33, §4 Public Safety – Disasters

M.G.L.c.90, §14 Regulate Motor Vehicles

M.G.L.c.54, §6 Set up Voting Precincts, Call Elections, etc.

M.G.L.c.158, §14 Permit Street Openings

M.G.L.c.159A, §1 Regulate Taxis, Trains, etc.

M.G.L.c.41, §56 Authorize Town Expenditures

M.G.L.c.44, §22 Sign Borrowings

M.G.L.c.41, §35 Set Officials’ Bonds

M.G.L.c.44, §31 Authorize Overexpenditures

M.G.L.c.140 §157 Judge Vicious Dogs

M.G.L.c.94, §221 Set Fees

M.G.L.c.41, §110 Declaration of Half Holidays

M.G.L.c.139, §2 Dispose of Dangerous Buildings

M.G.L.c.180, §5 Investigate Charitable Corporations

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Citation:  Duties of the Board of Selectmen in Westborough, Massachusetts. Timothy A. Dodd February 16, 2008. Accessed 16-Aug-2008.  ttp://www.town.westborough.ma.us/Public_Documents/WestboroughMA_BComm/BOSDuties/SELECTMEN-DUTIES.pdf