Medford governance committee approves technical charter edits, updates election language and refers articles to committee of whole

The Medford City Governance Committee on Feb. 4, 2025, voted to add the phrase “or ordinance” to a provision on mayoral appointments, approved replacing references to the city clerk in Article 7 with the Board of Election Commissioners and referred the revised charter articles to a Committee of the Whole for additional review.

The votes came during a meeting that reviewed Articles 3 (executive branch), 5 (administrative organization), 6 (financial procedures) and 7 (elections) of the Charter Study Committee recommendations. Committee members and staff spent most of the session clarifying how proposed changes would affect appointment authority, mayoral participation on boards and the city’s election oversight structure.

Why it matters: The changes under consideration govern the city’s balance of powers — who appoints department heads and board members, how temporary appointments are extended, and which body administers elections. Those points shape how city policy and administrative decisions are made and who has formal authority to act on them.

Committee debate focused on several recurring concerns. Councilors and residents asked whether giving the mayor ex officio membership on “multiple-member bodies” would chill independent commissions such as the Human Rights Commission or the Disabilities Commission. A Collins Center representative, explaining the draft language, said the mayor would be “a voice, but no vote” on boards and commissions such as the planning board or historic district commission.

Milva McDonald, chair of the Charter Study Committee, told the committee the study group reviewed balance-of-power questions and that “our mayor does not have more power than other mayors in the state,” citing an analysis the committee requested from the Collins Center.

Councilors also discussed appointment mechanics. Councilor Lozaro proposed — and the committee approved — adding “or ordinance” to the sentence that gives the mayor the power to appoint city officers, department heads and members of multiple-member bodies “for whom no other method of appointment or selection is provided by the Charter.” Lozaro said the change would preserve exceptions established by ordinance (she cited a draft Human Rights Commission ordinance under review). The motion passed on a roll-call vote: President Bares, Vice President Collins, Councilor Lozaro and Chair Sang voted yes; Councilor Scarpelli voted no.

The committee clarified other sections without formal action. Members asked about temporary appointment timelines (the draft allows an initial acting appointment followed by extensions up to roughly 300 days) and whether contracting with outside counsel (the city currently uses KP Law on retainer) would be affected. Committee members also sought clarification on whether the mayor may call special meetings of the city council; Collins Center staff said that provision is a common charter practice to allow prompt council consultation in emergencies.

On elections, the committee approved a motion from President Bares to change references to the city clerk in Article 7 to “Board of Election Commissioners,” reflecting Medford’s elections commission model. The motion passed by recorded vote; the clerk announced the result as 4 in favor, 1 opposed.

Public commenters urged the committee to consider rebalancing budget authority and to revisit participatory budgeting. Barry Ingber said he perceived a “huge imbalance in power between the mayor and the council” and urged giving the council more discretion over the budget. Matthew Page Lieberman said he regretted that participatory budgeting was not included in the current review.

The committee concluded the meeting by voting to refer the articles discussed, with the amendments adopted that night, to a Committee of the Whole for further consideration. That referral passed by recorded vote: President Bares, Vice President Collins, Councilor Lozaro and Chair Sang voted yes; Councilor Scarpelli voted no.

Votes at a glance: - Amendment to Section 3-3 to add “or ordinance” (motion by Councilor Lozaro; seconded and carried). Vote: President Bares — yes; Vice President Collins — yes; Councilor Lozaro — yes; Councilor Scarpelli — no; Chair Sang — yes. Outcome: approved. - Replace references to “city clerk” with “Board of Election Commissioners” in Article 7 (motion by President Bares; seconded by Councilor Lozaro). Vote: recorded as 4 in favor, 1 opposed (names not fully specified on the roll call in the transcript). Outcome: approved. - Refer articles discussed (Articles 3, 5, 6 and 7, with the night’s amendments) to Committee of the Whole (motion by President Bares). Vote: President Bares — yes; Vice President Collins — yes; Councilor Lozaro — yes; Councilor Scarpelli — no; Chair Sang — yes. Outcome: approved.

Next steps: Committee members said compensation questions and a final review of outstanding items (including council composition language) will be taken up at a future Governance Committee meeting (the chair announced a likely meeting on Feb. 19 at 6 p.m.). The referred package will go to a Committee of the Whole for further review before any version is transmitted to the mayor or to the legislature.