ELVIS Chair Bernstein provided updates on discussions on the status of remote participation implementation. The committee discussed the ongoing debate between allowing remote participation in open town meetings versus public meetings governed by the Open Meeting Law. Public meetings, such as school committee meetings, have operated with hybrid participation since the pandemic under temporary emergency legislation, which is set to expire at the end of March. There is disagreement among lawmakers on whether remote participation in public meetings should be optional for municipalities or mandated by state law.
Bernstein also reported on conversations with moderators such as Plymouth’s moderator, Steve Trifetti, who reinforced the importance of using a single application for remote participation to avoid voter confusion. Trifetti cited issues in Plymouth’s representative town meeting, where participants struggled with multiple platforms. The committee acknowledged that a unified platform, such as OTI’s Voter and Zoom integration, would allow for seamless participation.
Legislative Efforts and Advocacy
Legislative efforts to legalize remote participation remain ongoing. Representative Carmine Gentile has submitted a home rule petition for Wayland (HD 246), co-sponsored by Senator Jamie Eldridge and Representative David Linsky.
The proposed statewide bills, HD 2863 sponsored by Representative Danielle Gregoire and SD 1850 sponsored by Senator Jacob Oliveira, seek to allow but not mandate remote participation in open town meetings.
Preparations for the April 7 Town Meeting
The meeting also covered logistics for the upcoming annual town meeting on April 7, including electronic voting setup, attendance forecasting, and test vote procedures. The attendance survey results are expected by March 14. Mike Faia, Facilities Director, will finalize the number of check-in stations and voting handsets required. The committee also discussed safeguards against proxy voting, including real-time voter authentication and audit mechanisms to ensure voting integrity.
The committee also discussed the plans for a reenactment event prior to the start of Town Meeting, featuring High School students portraying a town meeting from 1775 in honor of the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution. Town Moderator Miranda Jones noted that town meeting will begin promptly at 6:45 p.m., and a new consent calendar process will be introduced to expedite multiple articles with a single vote. The committee acknowledged the potential for town meeting to conclude in one night if the consent calendar process is effective.
