Meriden council declines to waive two-week vetting period for three appointments

The Meriden City Council on Dec. 1 considered motions to waive a charter-mandated two-week vetting period for three appointments recommended by city leadership: Deputy Mayor Bruce Fontanella, Corporation Counsel Matthew McGoldrick, and Constituent Caseworker Robert Kaczynski Jr.

Minority caucus members argued that waiving the vetting period would prevent operational gaps; the minority leader said the deputy mayor and corporation counsel roles are critical and that incumbents had proven records of service. Majority caucus members, including Majority Leader Sonia Jokes, opposed waiving established practice and defended the vetting opportunity for all candidates.

The council voted on each motion by voice. The clerk summarized that for the deputy mayor waiver the majority caucus voted nay and the minority caucus voted aye, and the motion failed. A subsequent motion to waive vetting for corporation counsel similarly failed after voice voting; the clerk announced "the nays have it." A final attempt to waive vetting for the constituent caseworker also failed, and the vetting period remained in place for all three positions.

No individual roll-call vote with member-by-member tallies was recorded in the publicly available transcript; votes were taken by voice and the clerk offered a summary count for the first motion. Council debate focused on procedural habit versus the risk of leaving positions vacant for two weeks, and there was no formal amendment or compromise motion recorded during the meeting.