Wellington trustees refine draft bylaws, keep mayoral proclamation authority and clarify confidentiality; remove standalone whistleblower section

WELLINGTON — Trustees at a Wellington Board of Trustees work session reviewed a revised draft of the board’s bylaws on Oct. 5, discussing three substantive changes: proclamations, alternate confidentiality language, and a proposed whistleblower provision. Dan, a staff presenter, said the packet contains a new redline with three primary changes: a narrowed proclamations provision, two alternate confidentiality sections (labeled alternate A and alternate B), and a proposed whistleblower item that trustees debated and ultimately agreed not to include as a standalone section.

Trustees focused first on proclamations, agreeing to restore a mayoral-proclamation model but asking for an annual board-approved list to reduce ad hoc proclamations. Dan said the draft returns proclamations to mayoral proclamations “which historically is what the town has done.” Several trustees pressed for guardrails: one trustee proposed that the board approve a standing list of proclamations at the board’s organizational meeting in January so the mayor would have a year‑long, board‑approved set of proclamations while retaining discretion for additional requests.

The dr…