Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Wayland, Concord and others ask Legislature to allow remote participation at open town meeting
Summary
Lawmakers heard panels and residents urging either a statewide option or home rule for towns to permit remote audiovisual participation and voting at open town meetings, with proponents detailing security checks, costs and equity benefits and opponents warning of reduced deliberation.
Legislators on the Joint Committee on Municipalities and Regional Government on Tuesday heard competing testimony on bills that would let towns authorize remote audiovisual participation and voting at open town meeting. Supporters said enabling remote participation would expand access for parents, people with disabilities, caregivers and workers; opponents warned it could weaken deliberation. Proponents said the change would give towns a choice, not compel them to change. Tom Fay, a member of the Wayland Select Board, described the town’s multi-year work and asked the committee to allow Wayland and other towns to be “first movers.” Miranda…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
