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Committee considers bill allowing COA directors to hire staff when council is advisory
Summary
Lawmakers and council representatives discussed H.765 / S.487, a technical update to chapter 40, section 8B that would clarify hiring authority where municipal councils on aging function as advisory bodies. Sponsors and witnesses said the change responds to Attorney General office findings and modern practice; no committee vote was taken.
Representatives and municipal council advocates told the Joint Committee on Aging and Independence that H.765 / S.487 would modernize a 1956 statute by clarifying hiring authority for municipal councils on aging (COAs) that function as advisory boards.
"I'm here in support of H.765 S.487, an act relative to councils on aging," said Representative Donahue, the bill sponsor. He said the bill "would allow directors to make staffing decisions if the municipal council on aging is an advisory council," enabling COA directors to run their departments without requiring a formal vote by a volunteer board in communities where the council has only advisory powers.
Betsy Connell, executive director of the Massachusetts Association…
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