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General Code presents $19,540 recodification plan for North Adams ordinances
Summary
A representative from General Code laid out a 18–24 month reconsolidation and substantive legal review of North Adams ordinances, estimating a total project cost of about $19,540 spread over two-to-three fiscal years and recommending an ad hoc codification committee including the city clerk.
Zachary Dumont, an account manager with municipal codifier General Code, presented the company's proposal to "recodify" North Adams ordinances and correct long-standing conflicts in the city's code.
Dumont described the project as a three-phased process: an editorial and substantive legal review of existing ordinances, a restructuring and modernization of chapters, and publication onto a hosted code platform. "A municipal code is your collection of laws, rules and regulations that govern how your city operates," he said, adding that a substantive review for a community the size of North Adams typically takes about six to seven months and that the city should expect at least 100 business days for local review of drafts.
Dumont estimated the total project cost at approximately $19,540, spread over two to three fiscal years depending on schedule. He said the work would reconcile ordinances with Massachusetts General Laws, identify conflicts stemming from decades of incremental changes, and provide recommended adoptive language. "We're going to make sure that everything that we have on your books is compliant with Mass General law," he said.
Councilors asked about city staffing needs for the project; Dumont and the clerk said the clerk's office typically participates as the project liaison and the council should consider an ad hoc committee or ordinance-review committee to vet drafts before council votes. Coun. Fitch and others raised bandwidth questions; the clerk and Dumont noted that most workload is front-loaded to the review stage and that city staff would be engaged during the comment and drafting phases.
Dumont said the project would result in a modernized code, cleaner chapter structure, and a public ecode site for residents to consult. The council welcomed the presentation and planned to move forward with the signed proposal and establish the recommended committee structure.
Next steps: administration and the clerk's office will coordinate to implement a codification committee and prepare materials for the project kick-off; payments would be scheduled per the contract and project timeline.
