Charter Review Committee Debates Outreach Strategies, Seeks to Fill Opening

Report on the Meeting of the Charter Review Committee, January 30, 2025

The meeting was held on Zoom and recorded.

Present
Julian Hynes (Chair), Erika Mijlin, Andy Churchill, Bernie Kubiak, Raphael Rogers, Ken LeBlond, Meg Gage, Marcus Smith (One vacancy).  Athena O’Keeffe (Staff)

There were no comments from the public.

Collins Center Scope of Work 
At the last meeting, Andy Churchill agreed to contact Collins Center representatives regarding the scope of work and estimated cost of engaging their services.  Churchill reported that he spoke with Michael Ward (Director) and Anthony Wilson, both of whom are aware of the town’s charter review. Based on their experience with charter reviews of other towns, the costs could range as high as $20,000, although most consultations fall within the $12,000 to $15,000 range. Because of other commitments, they would not be available to begin work until some time in March. However, Ward and Wilson agreed to attend the next meeting on February 13 by Zoom to explain their services.

To control costs, the committee agreed with Churchill’s suggestion to request the Collins Center for an initial, more limited, consultative contract that could be expanded as needed. Instead of the committee determining the scope of work, along the lines described in Hynes’s January 2 memo, a vote passed unanimously to request the Collins Center to present a scope of work and estimated cost at the next meeting.  

Request for Funds 
If the committee accepts the Collins Center proposed budget, it will be submitted to the Town Manager as part of the request for funds from the 2025 Supplemental Budget. The request for funds also may include the cost of a town-wide mailing if the Outreach Subcommittee recommends this strategy. Meg Gage suggested that the subcommittee develop a draft calendar of outreach efforts. Athena O’Keeffe urged that such a calendar be coordinated with the required preliminary and final reports required by the committee charge.. The committee noted that the charge requires work to be completed by April 1, but the committee can request Town Council to approve an extension.

Interviews of Elected Officials
At the January 16 meeting, Bernie Kubiak offered a list that assigned each committee member to interview elected officials – Town Councilors, Library Trustees, and School Committee members. At this meeting, he presented a suggested list of questions, but quickly said he would welcome input from the Collins Center. Hynes emphasized the importance of questions being free of bias, although he did not see bias in Kubiak’s questions. Churchill anticipates that interviewees may not be familiar with charter details and therefore not have a clear idea of what needs to be changed.  Instead, questions such as “what is working” and “what is not working” would have a better chance of eliciting opinions. Gage said interviewees should be encouraged to speak from their own experience. Committee members agreed that Collins Center would be very helpful in refining the interview strategy. 

Erika Mijlin reported that at their last meeting, the Outreach Subcommittee agreed to consider issues related to the interview process, including the importance of having protocols, such as standardized questions. Another suggestion was to record and transcribe the interviews. The interviewee could then review the transcript for accuracy. The transcripts also could be included in an appendix to the final report. Marcus Smith and Hynes both cautioned that Massachusetts law requires consent to recording of both parties, and some interviewees may refuse. 

Kubiak noted that the number of interviews listed requires a significant time commitment from committee members. The committee voted unanimously to postpone scheduling interviews pending advice from Collins Center.

Committee Vacancy
Hynes reported that Dan Muscat resigned after the last meeting. He urged committee members to reach out to Dan who can explain his frustration and reasons for resigning. 

O’Keeffe said that a replacement will be sought because the Charge requires a 9-member committee and an even number is not appropriate.  As with the original appointments, the matter first will go to the Governance, Organizations, and Legislative Committee (GOL) of the Town Council. GOL will reach out to the original applicants and also open the process up to new applicants for perhaps 2 weeks. However, the committee can continue to operate at meetings as long as there is a quorum of five members present. 

Obtaining Opinions of Town Employees
Kubiak also prepared a list of possible interviewees from town employee starting with Department Heads. Hynes proposed that the list be expanded to include some boards and committees as well as other town staff. There were questions about how many interviews will be possible and whether town staff may be hesitant to participate. Hynes suggested using an anonymous survey with town staff but including some interviews with major department heads. Mijlin suggested that the committee determine a reasonable representative percentage of each cohort. Kubiak said that there are some staff, such as the Finance Director, who would be more involved in charter issues than others. Hynes urged there be a diverse cross-section selected, such as five department heads, five staff, and five chairs of boards or committees. Gage suggested interviewing more than one person at a time to increase efficiency and to deepen the exchange of information. Churchill asked that there be clarification on the strategy used for outreach.

Outreach Subcommittee Update
The Outreach subcommittee is meeting every other Thursday, the most recent held on January 23. In addition to the matters discussed in connection with interviews, Mijlin reported the subcommittee also developed a list of organizations, people, and facilities that could be helpful in reaching out to the general public. At Gage’s request, committee members agreed to review the list, make suggestions for additions. Gage will divide up the list among committee members to assist in researching the contact person for each listed entity.

Mijlin also reported that any survey to be used for public input needs organization and must give attention to the difference between general questions (e.g., how well is the charter serving your needs) and more specific categories and subtopics.  She cautioned that it is a recurring challenge to draft questions that are not leading and that avoid confirmation bias.  Perhaps the questions can be broken into two parts, with Part A being general questions and Part B focusing on specific topics. Gage suggested that questions could go beyond the language of the charter but also ask questions about practice, such as satisfaction with district meetings.  

Regarding the student population in town, the committee agreed that they should not be excluded from any public outreach. 

Raphael Rogers recalled that the Collins Center has done surveys for other towns that could be helpful to review. The committee agreed that the consultants would be very helpful to the process.

Gage mentioned that a member of the League of Women Voters asked if she (Gage) would like to post something about the Charter Review Committee in the next League newsletter. Gage asked whether it was permissible for her to offer the statement on seeking public input.  Hynes asked that requests like that come to him as chair, but Churchill countered by saying that the statement had been approved so, in his opinion, any committee member can distribute it.

Future Agenda Planning
Committee members discussed several possible topics for the next meeting’s agenda.  

• Kubiak suggested reviewing the charge and its required reports to fit in possible topics and time frames.
• Mijlin requested that a representative of the communications office on issues such as branding, who can report the results of that conversation to this committee, meet with the Outreach Subcommittee.
• Collins Center will attend the next meeting
• KP Law can attend the meeting on February 27; Kubiak noted that KP Law is the town’s legal counsel and should look over the shoulder of the Collins Center’s recommendations. Hynes agreed but pointed out the law firm protects the town’s interests in a way that may not fully align with this committee’s work.
• Gage questioned whether committee members should share their personal opinions about the charter. Hynes stressed the importance of the committee maintaining a neutral face while collecting opinions from others. Smith cautioned that personal opinions could create bias, and the committee needs to be open and neutral. Churchill noted that there may be time to exercise judgment at some point in the future.
• O’Keeffe advised that, at some point in the near future, the committee should consider when to request an extension.

The next meeting will be held on February 13, 2025.