Somerville council advances home rule charter, approves ballot question on 4-year mayoral term

The Somerville City Council on Oct. 26 amended the council's home rule petition to require a higher threshold for rejecting the city solicitor's reappointment, rejected a separate administration proposal to make the solicitor's term three years, and voted to place a separate ballot question on a four-year mayoral term on the municipal ballot in 2025.

The amendment the council approved reads in part: "Provided, however, that a reappointment shall not be rejected except by negative vote of 8 members of the city council." Councilor Davis moved the amendment and the council approved it 10-1, with Councilor Scott the sole no vote.

The change alters the reappointment process the petition would send to the state legislature as Somerville seeks approval of a new city charter. Councilors who supported the amendment said it strengthens legislative oversight of the city solicitor without granting unilateral removal authority, while opponents said the higher threshold is an unnecessary concession.

Councilor McLaughlin, who said she had discussed the change with the mayor's office, described the provision as a necessary accountability measure: "This is not about firing the solicitor to me. This is about us being able to go to our solicitor for information and trust that information," she said. She and others argued a two-thirds threshold ensures any rejection reflects broad council agreement.

The council considered, and then defeated, a separate amendment sponsored by the administration and moved by Councilor McLaughlin to set the city solicitor's term at three years. That motion failed on a roll call vote of 3 in favor and 8 opposed. The three members voting to lengthen the term were Councilor McLaughlin, Councilor Strezzo and Councilor Pineda Neufeld; eight councilors voted no.

Administration liaison Hutter urged the longer term as a recruitment and institutional-knowledge measure: "The administration would like to see the term length for the city solicitor set at 3 years," she said, adding that many other municipal appointments are three-year terms. Steve McGoldrick, identified as an expert from the Collins Center, summarized comparative practice: "Vast majority in city forms, 3 year terms." Supporters of the two-year term said a shorter term preserves more frequent legislative oversight.

Separately, the council voted 7-4 to add two sections directing that a voters' ballot question on a four-year mayoral term be placed on the municipal ballot on Nov. 4, 2025 (or the next regular municipal election at which the city can comply with state ballot requirements). The approved language would ask voters whether the mayor's term should be four years and, if approved by voters, would amend the charter language accordingly once the legislature approves the home rule petition. Councilors voting in favor included Councilor McLaughlin, Councilor Wilson and Councilor Klingen; Councilors opposed included Councilor Scott and Councilor Mbah.

Councilor Scott raised procedural and legal concerns about coupling a binding referendum on mayoral term length with the home rule petition, warning the arrangement could create "corner case" conflicts if voters approved one measure and not the other. He said the language as drafted could be interpreted to create an implicit binding referendum authority that did not previously exist in the city charter.

Council discussion also included administrative timing fixes to when the charter questions would appear on the ballot; the council approved language to insert the word "next" before "regular municipal election" and to allow placement at the next regular election at which the city can comply with commonwealth ballot requirements.

After several votes and the addition of the mayoral-term question, a councilor said he needed time to prepare a package of potential countermeasures and invoked the charter's Section 15 to table the item for further consideration. The council then laid both the council's and the mayor's home rule petitions on the table for a future meeting.

The home rule petition, with the council's approved amendments, will be sent to the state legislature for its consideration under the standard Home Rule Petition process. If approved by the legislature, the charter and any tied ballot questions would return to Somerville voters for final acceptance as described in the petition.

Votes at a glance: - Amendment raising the rejection threshold for solicitor reappointment to "negative vote of 8 members": approved, 10-1 (Councilor Scott opposed). - Change solicitor term from 2 to 3 years: failed, 3-8 (McLaughlin, Strezzo, Pineda Neufeld voted yes). - Add Sections 5 and 6 (place a separate ballot question on a 4-year mayoral term on Nov. 4, 2025 or next compliant election): approved, 7-4.

Next steps: the council laid the petitions on the table pending further amendments and the city will transmit the council's home rule petition, as amended, to the Massachusetts legislature for consideration. The council scheduled the item to return at a later meeting for additional motions and final action if needed.