Attorney advises explicit at-will removal language for certain appointed municipal officers

The committee considered house amendments that would insert one-year statutory terms for certain appointed municipal officers (constables, delinquent tax collectors and municipal clerks) and thereby remove language requiring removal only for just cause after notice and hearing.

Attorney Tucker Anderson told the committee that creating a statutory term of office may, under Vermont case law, be read to imply a just-cause removal requirement. He recommended that if the committee wants at-will removal for those appointed offices, it should expressly say so in statute rather than inserting a one-year term that could be interpreted differently by courts.

Anderson’s explanation: when a statute establishes a fixed term for an appointed officer, courts sometimes construe that arrangement as creating a property or tenure interest that requires just cause for removal. To avoid that unintended outcome, Anderson recommended removing the one-year durational term and instead expressly authorizing at-will removal where that is the legislature’s intent.

Committee members asked for more background on the statutory distinction between appointed officers and employees, and whether certain routine municipal appointments (for example, the annually-appointed tree warden) are exceptions. Members asked staff to gather additional guidance and background materials on the distinction between appointment and employment and how statutory terms have been interpreted in Vermont case law.

No final statutory language was adopted during the meeting; staff were asked to draft language that either preserves at-will removal explicitly or otherwise clarifies the treatment of these appointed positions to reflect the committee’s intent.