Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the School Voting topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Clerks urge choice on commingling school ballots; committee seeks input from superintendents
Summary
Town clerks from Essex, Essex Junction and Westford raised concerns about mandatory commingling of school ballots; the committee said it would seek input from superintendents and school boards and consider giving towns an option.
Multiple town clerks contacted the committee, and members reported emails and calls from clerks in Essex, Essex Junction and Westford expressing concern about commingling school ballots from different towns into a single district tally.
Committee members described the operational burden: transporting ballots to a central location, additional time to count, and perceived risk in moving ballots versus counting locally. One senator said commingling had been introduced only in recent years and questioned the reason for the change; another suggested making commingling an option so towns that prefer to keep ballots separate can do so.
Members asked staff to invite superintendents and school boards to explain why commingling occurred and whether it remains appropriate given possible upcoming changes to school voting processes. No changes to statutory language were adopted at the meeting; staff were asked to solicit additional input and consider language that would permit towns to opt out of commingling.
