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Council creates five‑member Charter Review Commission with June deadline for report
Summary
The council approved a resolution to establish a five‑member Charter Review Commission (one council member, four public members) to review the town charter and deliver recommendations by a target date; council discussed transparency and suggested livestreaming commission meetings.
The North Smithfield Town Council voted to establish a five‑member Charter Review Commission charged with reviewing the town charter and proposing amendments.
Council member Speaker 3, who drafted the resolution with the solicitor, said the commission would include one council member and four public appointees, solicit citizen input through public forums, review prior commission reports, and deliver recommended amendments to the council. "State laws have changed; we need to bring [the charter] up to code in that regard," Speaker 3 said.
Members discussed process details, including whether the commission should livestream meetings or make them available online for transparency; multiple council members urged an expedited timetable and suggested a report date (deadline) of June 30 of the target year. The council voted to approve the resolution, with members noting minor typographical corrections to the draft and agreeing to refine the timeline and appointment process via the existing board/commission application system.
Next steps: The council will accept applications for the four public seats and appoint members at a subsequent meeting; staff and the solicitor will finalize language and timelines in the adopted resolution.
