1. Municipal public library may not charge residents for its basic services. A public library is defined as "any library established and maintained by a municipality or by a private association, corporation or group to provide basic library services free of charge to all residents of a municipality or a community and which receives its annual financial support in whole or in part from public funds. 22 V.S.A. § 101. This means that a municipal public library may not charge residents for its basic services. Basic services have been treated by the Vermont Department of Libraries as including all items a library circulates (e.g., print and nonprint materials), reference service, interlibrary loan, programming (except for recovery of the cost of materials), and public access computing (including internet access). This rule is consistent with the authority of other municipal entities. Municipal boards only have those authorities directly granted by the legislature. This means that fees cannot be charged by municipalities unless specifically authorized in statute or directly implied by some other authority granted by the legislature. Note that a municipal library may charge non-residents a borrowing fee and it may also charge rent in the event that it has extra space available for non-library use.

2. Upon election to offices that are incompatible a person must resign from one, creating a vacancy. A person may run for two incompatible offices, but upon election, the official must resign from one of the positions. This creates a vacancy that must be filled according to statutory procedures.

4. Errors or omissions in the warning or notice can be cured by a vote to validate. If errors of omission or noncompliance with the statutory requirements for Notice and/or Warning for the Annual Meeting were made, you can look at 17 V.S.A. § 2662, validation of municipal meetings, to see if you can cure the errors by using the procedures in this section. Under section 2662 an article can be added to the next annual or special meeting warning with the wording, "shall the action taken at the meeting of _________Town (or city or district) held on ____________(date), in spite of the fact that _____________________(state the error or omission), and any act or action of the municipal officers or agents pursuant thereto be re-adopted, ratified and confirmed."

We strongly suggest that School Boards and Selectboards carefully review the draft warning in order to avoid unnecessary errors with respect to meeting locations, polling places, times of meetings, dates, and budget amounts. We also recommend that whoever brings the Warning to the town clerks office confirms the meeting times and places with the Town Clerk in order to avoid unnecessary errors or conflicts.

5. Clerk must record deed and survey that is properly submitted for recording. A town clerk must record properly submitted deed and survey (conforming to statutory requirements in 27 V.S.A. §341) even if an abutter objects that it contains incorrect information. The recording function is a ministerial duty that allows the documents to provide notice to others. If a correction needs to be made, a new corrected deed or survey must be submitted for recording.

6. A person in a correctional institution must register to vote in the last town he/she resided. Vermont law provides that "a person can neither gain nor lose residency…while in a correctional institution." 17 V.S.A. §2121 and 2122(a). There is an additional, more specific, provision in 28 V.S.A. §807 that states that a person cannot register to vote in the town where the correctional facility is located. While some attorneys consider this provision to be unconstitutional, it has not been challenged in court so is presumed valid.

7. A special process must be followed in order for the municipality to vote to borrow through bonding. To begin the process for a bond vote the selectboard must first pass a resolution of public necessity. 24 V.S.A. §1755. All bond votes require special and additional notice and warning to be provided as directed in 24 V.S.A. §1756. The ballots must be prepared as directed in 24 V.S.A. §1758. Selectboards and town clerks must provide copies documenting the various steps to bond counsel. It is wise to confirm that you have covered all the necessary steps for warning with bond counsel before the final time for posting of the warnings.

8. Custodians of public records do not have to research or fax documents. The public records law in 1 V.S.A. §315-318 provides that custodians of public documents must make documents available to the public for inspection and copying during reasonable hours. The law does not require that the custodians fax copies of documents to anyone, or require that the custodian conduct research to find documents. While each custodian can establish additional office practices as a courtesy to the public, we advise towns to discuss their policies with their town attorney to ensure that these practices will not create a risk of liability for the town.

9. Selectboard may accept gift or grant without voter approval. It is our opinion that a selectboard may accept a grant to purchase property for the town without approval from the voters at an annual or special meeting. It has been this office’s advice that where the grant is from a federal or state system which by law does not expressly provide for a vote of the electorate, the selectmen could apply for and accept grants on their own initiative. See also Lawton v. Town of Brattleboro, 128 VT 525 (1970), where the court found that a vote of the electorate is not always an indispensable prerequisite to the authority of the selectmen to function in areas of their official responsibility.

10. Town highways are altered without voter approval. Towns must carefully follow all of the required statutory procedures to reclassify a highway from 4 to 3. The procedures to increase classification are the same as those used to take a highway to a lower classification or to abandon a road. 19 V.S.A. §§707-717. The law requires the selectboard to provide notice of the proposed change, they need to hold a hearing, do a site visit and make a decision. The voters don’t get to vote on this issue. Rather, if interested parties are unhappy with the board’s decision they can appeal to district court who will appoint a commission to decide the issue. Note that the selectboard can use funds from its town highway budget to improve the road, if that is necessary to bring the road up to the new classification standards. A vote of the electorate is only required if additional funds are needed.

11. Citizens may petition to lay out, discontinue or reclassify a town road. The law provides that if at least 5% of a town’s voters and/or landowners petition to have a highway laid out, altered, reclassified, or discontinued the board must begin the statutory process. Note that even if the process is started by petition it is, in the first instance, within the board’s discretion whether to grant or deny the requested change. (Of course this decision can be appealed.) 19 V.S.A. §708. The selectboard may order that the petitioners pay the costs of upgrading a class 4 town highway to the class 3 town highway standards. 19 V.S.A. § 711.

12. Selectboard is not required to reclassify a class 4 road to a class 3. In deciding whether to reclassify a road the selectboard makes a decision according to what it deems is the public good and necessity. The law specifically provides that a class 4 highway need not be reclassified to class 3 merely because there exists within a town one or more class 3 highways with characteristics similar to the class 4 highway. In considering whether to reclassify a class 4 highway to class 3, consideration may be given as to whether the increased traffic and development potential likely to result from the reclassification is desirable or is in accordance with the town plan. 19 V.S.A. § 711.

13. Emails are subject to the Public Record Law. The Vermont Public Record Law broadly defines public record or public document as "…or any other written or recorded matters produced or acquired in the course of agency business…" unless the document fits one of the exceptions listed in the statute. 1 V.S.A. § 317(b). This means that emails that are written, sent, or received in the course of the business of the public board or entity or between board members dealing with board business are public records and must be produced for inspection upon request. An email must be reviewed or considered in the same light as a letter would be considered on the same topic. If a letter on the same subject would become a public record, then the email is public record. Copies of emails sent and/or received in the course of board business should be provided to the custodian of public records for the board so that the public can inspect them upon request. Note that it does not matter that the emails were sent or received from home computers.

14. Town manager form of government is adopted in the same way officers are elected. Vermont law provides that the manner in which a town votes to either adopt or revoke the town manager system is determined by the manner in which the town has voted to elect its town officers. 24 V.S.A. §1242 and 1243. If a town has voted to elect its officers by Australian Ballot, then any vote on the town manager system of government is done by Australian Ballot (whether to adopt or to revoke.) If a town still votes its officers from the floor by voice vote or paper ballot, then the vote to adopt or revoke the town manager system is by the floor system of voting. The legislature decided to "piggyback" the manner of voting to the manner in which officers are elected rather than dictate Australian Ballot for all towns.

15. Town manager has broad authority under state law. Chapter 37 of title 24 provides that the manager shall have authority and it shall be his duty: "to cause duties required of towns and town school districts and not committed to the care of any particular officer, to be duly performed and executed . . . and to perform all duties now conferred by law upon the selectmen . . . except that he shall not prepare tax bills, sign orders on the general fund of the town, other than orders for poor relief, call special or annual town meetings, lay out highways, establish and lay out public parks, make assessments, award damages, act as member of the board of civil authority, nor make appointments to fill vacancies which the selectmen are now authorized by law to fill." 24 V.S.A. § 1236. In addition the manager is given specific areas of control listed in 24 V.S.A. section 1236 (including being the purchasing agent, supervising public buildings, accounting for the town and possibly for the school district, collecting the taxes and delinquent taxes – if the town so votes, overseeing the roads, the police and fire departments, maintenance of parks, etc . . . ).
24 V.S.A. §1236.

16. A public board cannot "recess" its meeting for a brief time in order for board members to leave the room to continue to discuss board business in private. All board business must be discussed in public unless it meets the requirements of one of the two exceptions to the open meeting law executive session or deliberative session. 1 V.S.A. §312. It is perfectly appropriate for a board to take a brief recess to allow members to use the facilities, take a stretch, or return an important telephone call. However, the recess should not be a ruse so that board members can discuss board business outside of the hearing of the attending public.

17. Nonbinding questions must be voted in the same way you vote public questions. A board can put a non-binding question before the voters at an annual or special meeting. This question must be voted in the same way the municipality votes its public questions. If the board wishes it can also raise issues that are non-binding during the "other business’ portion of the town or annual meeting agenda.

18. Municipalities can set up recreation systems. There is a special area in the law devoted to municipal authority over recreation. It provides that municipalities, singly or jointly, may establish, maintain and conduct a system of public recreation including playgrounds. They can buy, lease or accept gifts of land, buildings or other recreational facilities, they can bond for these public improvements and they may hire a recreation director and assistant director. 31 V.S.A. § 202.

19. Municipal recreation programs can be overseen by the legislative body or a by recreation board. The legislative body of a municipality can oversee recreation themselves – or through their town manager or it can establish a recreation board. When the legislative body establishes the recreation committee or board it must decide how many members to include and it must determine the terms of office. The law requires that the terms be staggered so that the term of one member expires annually.

20. Felons can vote in Vermont and serve in elected office. With the exception of a conviction for voter or elections fraud no Vermont law prohibits a felon from voting or serving as an elected official in Vermont. It is up to the voters to decide whether the felony conviction is reason to not elect a particular candidate to office.