General Information About How Municipal Government Works
Best
Practice Standards for Indexing Land Record Instruments - best practice
standards to facilitate consistent indexing of land records and other
instruments.
Digging Deep - a guide to cemetery and burial law.
Who’s Who in Local Government
- A short list of municipal officials and their functions.
It’s Your Turn: A Call to Public Office
- An introduction to locally elected positions (Vermont
Institute for Government 1997).
Municipal Law Basics - a resource for local officials and members of
the public who want to better understand the legal context of municipal
government.
Isn't there a law about that? A
guide to finding Vermont law designed for citizens and local
officials. (Vermont Institute for Government 1999).
Tune-Up for Towns - This is a check list for town officials
to help ensure that the town is complying with the many state laws
that apply to our local governments.
Justice of the Peace Guide - This
publication reviews the role and functions of Vermont’s justices of
the peace and the laws that apply to them.
Open Government and
Ethics
A Pocket Guide to Open Meetings - A guide outlining the
requirements of Vermont’s open meeting law (2006).
Matter of Public Record: A Guide to Vermont's Public Records Law
- An introduction to the subject of public records. It is written
for use by those who seek access to public records, and for the
custodians of those records (2001).
Drawing Clear Lines: Adopting Conflict of Interest Ordinances for
Local Officials - Short pamphlet discussing existing laws
regulating the conduct of local officials and outlining a
municipality’s ability to adopt binding rules of ethics and what
should go into such rules (2000).
Born to Chair - An introduction to
the science and art of chairing a board meeting (Vermont Institute
for Government 1998).
Changing the
World: A Citizen’s Guide to Public Meetings (Vermont
Institute for Government).
Disability Etiquette: A Guide to Respectful Communication -
Tips for people who serve the public, designed to ensure effective
and respectful communication with members of the public who have
disabilities (2004).
Taxes
About Abatement
- Of all the decisions left to local boards, the decision whether
and when to abate property taxes is among the most difficult. This
publication includes a discussion of particular laws and best
practices. Also included are four case studies and the relevant
statutes.
Handbook on Property Tax Appeals - This handbook seeks to
improve the quality of the tax appeal process by providing local
officials and landowners an in-depth guide to the statutes, case law
and best practices of conducting tax appeals.
Are You Appealing? An
introductory guide for citizens on Vermont property tax assessment
appeals (Vermont Institute for Government 1999).
The
Listers Handbook - A property tax assessment resource for
listers, created by the Division of Property Valuation and Review.
Property Education Tax Guidelines for Treasurers and Collectors
- Published by the Vermont Tax Department, this guide answers
questions on education tax.
Law of Libraries
Law
of Libraries - 15
page pamphlet jointly published by the Secretary of State’s Office
and the Vermont Department of Libraries, designed to explain the
basic laws that apply to the administration of Vermont’s municipal
and incorporated libraries (2000).
