| John Salisbury |
A total of 43 residents in the 18-40 age group had responded to the Charter Commission public survey as of November 22, 2021, the date of the last Charter Commission meeting. The future leadership of New Gloucester is likely to evolve. The current leadership on the Board of Selectmen already includes one person who falls in this age group and four members within the 41-60 age group.
So, let’s first look at the 18-40 age group results for selected categories of responses. Please note that the analysis that follows is my own, not that of the commission as a whole.
A total of 43 persons in the 18-40 age group responded to the survey by November 22. (Not all respondents answered every question, so some totals below are less than 43.)
Foremost in the minds of many New Gloucester citizens is whether or not town meeting should be continued. Only 44%, 18 of the 41 individuals in this age group who answered the question, have attended one or more town meetings in the last seven years.
One of the most important legislative functions is the adoption of the budget. Currently the town meeting is responsible for adopting the budget. While a total of 28 of 43 (65%) want town meeting continued in some form, only 6 of those respondents support town meeting having the sole responsibility for adopting the budget. Twenty-one respondents (49%) want the budget to be voted on by referendum. Two persons support having the Board of Selectmen/Town Council adopt the budget.
The other major legislative function currently performed by town meeting is the adoption of ordinances. Here again the town meeting is favored to continue this function by fewer than 12% of those 18-to-40-year-olds responding to the question, only five people. Instead, 74% favored either a referendum (18 respondents) or a combination of town meeting, referendum, and/or select board/council (13 respondents).
The number of voters attending town meeting has been a concern expressed and discussed by the Charter Commission. Twenty-six of 42 respondents in the 18-40 age group (62%) favored setting a minimum attendance requirement.
What about the size of the Board of Selectmen or Town Council? Of those responding to this question, more than one-half in this age group (60%) favored a seven-member board. A total of 40% favored keeping the current five-member size of the board.
Currently elections for the Board of Selectmen are by vote of all registered voters in the town. The 18-40 age group supported continuing electing the Board of Selectmen at-large (81%). The balance of the respondents (19%) favored electing selectmen either by district or a combination of at-large and district voting.
What conclusion can one make from the responses of the 18-40 age group? Change! The 18-40 age group is asking for change in the budgeting and ordinance adoption responsibilities of the New Gloucester town meeting. The group also wants to see greater participation of voters in town meeting through a minimum attendance requirement.
— John Salisbury, Vice-chair, Charter Commission
Editors’ note: There’s still time to complete the Charter Commission survey, if you haven’t already. The deadline is Monday December 6 at the end of the day, according to the commission. To complete the survey, click this link. To see full survey results as of November 22, including graphics and comments, click here.
