House committee hears H.10 to move Berry town meeting to May, make treasurer an appointed position and remove old school-district language

The House Government Operations and Military Affairs committee heard testimony on H.10, a bill that would amend the Berry city charter to move the annual town meeting to the second Tuesday in May, separate the clerk and treasurer offices so the treasurer would be appointed rather than elected, and remove outdated references to the Berry Unified Union School District.

City Manager Nicholas Streli Castro told the committee the city first moved town meeting to May in 2024 to allow more time to craft a post-flood budget and to await state legislative aid. He said the change produced a more informed budget and higher turnout: "we came up with a great product, a great budget that our voters approved," Castro said. He reported there were 1,565 votes cast in the May election compared with 1,231 in the prior March election, a 27% increase.

Castro said the May date also aligns better with neighboring municipalities and local institutions, and that the separation of clerk and treasurer follows a model used in other Vermont municipalities. He said the change would allow the elected clerk to focus on clerk duties while an appointed treasurer would coordinate with an existing finance department. "I still continue to serve the City of Berry as their tax increment finance administrator, so, I haven't gone too far," said Carol Dawes, former Berry city clerk and treasurer, who testified and said she submitted written materials to the committee.

Castro asked the committee to include a technical amendment addressing two missed references to the March annual meeting in section 207 of the charter. He told members the measures were approved by voters last year; he said the move to May passed with about 57% support and that the other two changes passed with about 67% support. When committee member Brett Morgan requested exact tallies, Castro provided vote counts for two items: separating the clerk and treasurer — 1,057 in favor, 424 against, 87 undervotes — and removing school-district references — 1,061 in favor, 389 against, 115 undervotes. The committee record did not include a clear, unambiguous numerical tally for the town-meeting-date measure beyond the percentage cited by Castro; committee staff noted the full packet and official results are posted to the committee page under H.10.

No formal committee action or vote on H.10 is recorded in the transcript provided. Committee members and staff discussed ensuring the complete charter amendment packet, including the Secretary of State filing and draft legal documents, is posted under the submitter's name for public access.

The testimony and packet will remain part of the committee record as members consider any technical edits and next steps for H.10.