USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Lincoln > Town Report on Lincoln 1956-1959 > Part 47
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Article 12. To determine whether the Town will vote to appropriate the sum of $1,000.00 for permanent improve- ments in the cemeteries, said sum to be taken from the Cemetery Improvement Fund, or take any other action rela- tive thereto.
Voted : That the sum of $1,000.00 is hereby appropriated to the use of the Cemetery Commissioners for permanent improvements, said sum to be taken from the Cemetery Investment Fund.
Article 13. To determine whether the Town will vote to enact a new set of General By-Laws, a copy of which is on file at the office of the Town Clerk and a copy of which has been distributed to each household in the Town. Voted: (unanimously) That the Town enact new General By-Laws in the form distributed to each household in the Town except for the correction of the following typo-
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graphical errors : (1) Amend the title of Article III, page 5, to read "Powers and Duties of Certain Officers" and
(2) Add the word "of" after the word "compromise" in line 4, page 14, of Article VII, section 4; also that Article VII, section 3 be amended by deleting in lines 22 and 23 the words "a resident of the Town who is" so that the General By-Laws will read as follows :
GENERAL BY-LAWS OF THE TOWN OF LINCOLN
Article I
General Provisions
Section 1. The following provisions shall consti- tute the General By-Laws of the Town of Lincoln, which shall be in lieu of all General By-Laws heretofore in force. These By-Laws shall have no retro-
active effect. Nothing in these General By-Laws shall affect any special By-Laws of the Town, including the Zoning By-Laws and the Building Code By-Laws.
Section 2. . The repeal of a By-Law shall not there- by have the effect of reviving any By- Laws theretofore repealed.
Section 3. Whenever a penalty is provided for the violation of a By-Law it shall be for
each violation.
Section 4. Whoever violates any provisions of these By-Laws whereby any act or thing is en- joined or prohibited, shall, unless other provision is expressly made, pay a fine not exceeding twenty dollars for each offense.
Section 5. Unless otherwise provided in these By- Laws, governing instrument or the
General Laws, any Board, Commission, or committee of the Town may act by a majority.
Section 6.
Any or all of these By-Laws may be re- pealed or amended or other By-Laws may be adopted at any Town Meeting, an article or articles for that purpose having been inserted in the warrant for
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such meeting. It shall be sufficient notice of the pro- posed amendment if the text thereof is on file at the Selectmen's office and available for inspection seven or more days prior to the Town Meeting.
Section 7. Whenever reference is made in these By- Laws to the General Laws, such reference Shall mean the General Laws of the Commonwealth of Massa- chusetts as from time to time amended.
Section 8. Whenever reference is made to committees in these By-Laws, for the purposes of these By-Laws only the term committees shall include boards and commissions.
Article II
Town Meetings
Section 1. The Annual Town Meeting shall be held on the first Monday after the fifteenth day of March in each year at 7:30 P. M. for the transaction of all business except that the election of such officers and the determination of such matters as by law are re- quired to be elected or determined by ballot shall take place on the following Saturday when the polls shall be open from 12 M. until 7 P. M. or to such later time up to 8 P. M. as the Moderator may determine.
Section 2. Special meetings may be called at any time by the Selectmen or in any other manner provided by law.
Section 3.
Every Town Meeting shall be called in pursuance of a warrant under the hands of the Selectmen stating the time and place of holding the same and the subjects to be acted upon, notice of which shall be given at least seven days before such meeting by a constable or other person to whom it is directed, who shall attest and post copies thereof in or on three or more buildings belonging to the Town or any three public places in the Town and make his return of service thereof to the Selectmen. In addition the Selectmen shall send by mail or otherwise to each household within the Town, at least seven days before the time appointed for such meeting, a copy of such notice and warrant, but no failure to receive such notice shall invalidate any action taken at such meeting.
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Section 4. Admission to the place of meeting or to a defined portion set aside for the holding thereof shall be open only to registered voters whose names appear on the check list thereof. The Moderator shall enforce this section throughout each meet- ing.
Section 5. The number of voters necessary to con- stitute a quorum at any Town Meeting shall be 100, provided however that a number less than a quorum may from time to time adjourn the same. This section shall not apply to such parts of meetings as are devoted to the election of Town officers.
Section 6. Articles of the warrant shall be acted upon in the order in which they appear unless otherwise determined by vote of the meeting.
Section 7. A motion shall, if required by the Moderator, be reduced to writing before
being submitted to the meeting.
Section 8. When a question is put, the sense of the meeting shall be determined by voice vote unless otherwise provided by law, and the Moderator shall declare the vote as it appears to him. If the Moderator is in doubt as to the result of such voice vote, or if his decision is immediately questioned by seven or more voters rising in their places for that purpose, the Moderator shall call for another vote to be taken, as he may decide, by show of hands, by standing vote, by use of the check list, or by ballot.
Section 9. When a question is before the meeting, the following motions, to wit: (1) To adjourn
(2) To lay on the table
(3) For the previous question
(4) To postpone to a certain time
(5) To commit, recommit or refer
(6) To amend
(7) To postpone indefinitely
shall be received and shall have preference in the fore- going order; and the first three shall be decided without debate, and the third by two-thirds vote.
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Section 10. No motion, the effect of which would be
to dissolve the meeting, shall be in order until every article in the warrant for such meeting has been finally disposed of, but this shall not preclude an adjournment of the meeting to some other date.
Section 11. On proposed amendments involving sums of money, the larger or largest amount shall be put to the question first, and an affirmative vote thereon shall be a negative vote on a smaller amount.
Section 12, (a) All committees, the appointment of which was authorized by a Town Meeting, other than permanent committees, shall report as directed by the Town. When a report of such a committee is placed in the hands of the Moderator, it shall be deemed to be properly before the meeting for its action thereon, and a vote to accept the same shall discharge, the committee ex- cepting that if a committee requests that it be continued to a specified date in order to complete its assignment and if the Town so votes, said committee shall be con- tinued to said specified date.
(b) If a committee shall make no re- port by the time specified when it was created or, in the absence of any such specified time, within one year after its appointment, such committee shall be discharged unless in the meantime the Town shall have granted an extension to a specified date.
(c) For the adoption of any of the recommendations of a committee, a
specific vote shall be required.
Article III
Powers and Duties of Certain Officers
Section 1. Selectmen The Selectmen shall have general direction and manage- ment of the property and affairs of the Town in all mat- ters not otherwise provided by the General Laws and these By-Laws.
Section 2, Treasurer (a) The Town Treasurer shall have custody of all funds be- longing to the Town, including trust funds, except funds for which other provision is made by law. Unless other- wise provided by law he shall pay no money from the treas-
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ury except upon a warrant signed by a majority of the Selectmen. Such warrant shall be sufficient authority to the Treasurer to pay the same, and the payment thereof shall discharge him from all liability on account of the money so paid.
(b) The Treasurer shall file and safely keep all receipts, vouchers and cancelled obligations of the Town and shall have the custody of all deeds, contracts, insurance poli- cies and other similar documents owned or held by the Town, and, except for fidelity bonds covering Town officer and employees which shall be filed with the Selectmen, shall have custody of all bonds which run to the Town or any of its commissioners, committees or officers.
Section 3. Town Collector
(a) The Collector of Taxes shall collect, under the title of Town Collector, all accounts due the Town except inter- est on investments of trust and other funds.
( b) All accounts coming due the Town shall forthwith be
committed by the several officers and committees of the Town to the Town Collector, together with all available information in relation thereto.
(c) If it shall seem advisable to the Town Collector that suit should be instituted on behalf of the Town for the estab- lishment or collection of any account due the Town, he shall so notify the Selectmen, and he shall report to them from time to time, as they may direct, upon all un- collected accounts in his hands.
(d) The Town Collector shall, at least once in each week, pay over to the Town Treasurer all money received by him on every such account, including any sums received as inter- est thereon, and shall transmit to the Town Accountant a statement thereof.
Section 4. Town Clerk (a) As soon as may be but in any event within the week fol- lowing the final adjournment of any Town Meeting, the Town Clerk shall transmit to the Selectmen, to the Town Treasurer, to the Town Accountant, and to the Assessors, certified copies of all votes appropriating money or
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authorizing the expenditure of money or otherwise affect- ing the finances of the Town, and within the same period the Town Clerk shall transmit to all other Town officers or committees a certified copy of any vote of the Town affecting their respective powers or duties.
( b) The Town Clerk shall have custody of the Town Seal.
(c) The Town Clerk shall keep a file of all Town Reports,
reports of all committees of the Town, and all original documents relating to the affairs of the Town which may come into his possession. It shall be the duty of the Town Clerk to see that all conveyances of real estate to the Town are properly recorded in the Registry of Deeds.
Section 5, Town Accountant
(a) The Selectmen may appoint a Town Accountant for a term of three years and until his successor is qualified.
( b) All heads of departments, officers, and committees shall
transmit to the Town Accountant all bills, drafts, orders, and payrolls chargeable to the respective appropriations of which they have the expenditure. The Town Accountant shall draw warrants upon the Treasury for all such bills, drafts, orders, and payrolls as have been approved and are correct and are not in excess of the appropriations there- for, and transmit the same to the Selectmen for their ap- proval.
(c) The Town Accountant shall keep a complete set of books
indicating the amount of each specific appropriation, the amounts and purposes of expenditures made therefrom, the receipts from each source of income, and the amount of each assessment levied and the abatements made. The Town Accountant shall make an Annual Report of the same to the Selectmen to be printed in the Annual Town Report.
(d) At least once each month the Town Accountant shall send to the Selectmen and to each head of department, officer, and committee a statement of the amounts drawn against appropriations under their charge and the balance of such appropriations remaining subject to draft.
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Section 6. General
In addition to the powers and duties hereinbefore set forth, the officers referred to in this Article and all other officers of the Town shall have such powers and duties as may be provided by law or specified in other Articles of these and other By-Laws of the Town.
Article IV
Finance Committee
Section 1. There shall be a permanent committee
known as the Finance Committee, composed of five registered voters of the Town, who shall serve without pay, and shall not, while serving on said Committee, hold any other Town office or committee membership, either elective or appointive, nor be in the employ of the Town, except as otherwise provided in these By-Laws or as ex- pressly authorized by vote of the Town.
Section 2. The Moderator of the Town shall, within thirty days after the final adjournment of every Annual Town Meeting, appoint for a term of three years either one person or two persons, as may be necessary, to provide a committee of five members. The term of of - fice of each member shall commence immediately upon quali- fication and shall expire upon the final adjournment of the third succeeding Annual Town Meeting. The Committee shall choose from its members a Chairman, a Secretary, and such other officers as it may determine. The Chairman may appoint from its members sub-committees to assist in carrying out the duties of the Committee.
Section 3. The Committee shall consider any or all municipal questions for the purpose of making reports and recommendations to the Town, and in particular shall perform the following duties:
(a) It shall prepare and submit the Annual Budget for consideration at the Annual Town Meeting, and in this connection shall hold a public hearing on said Budget prior to the day of the Annual Town Meeting. Notice of such hearing shall be sent at least three days prior thereto by mail or other- wise to each household within the Town.
(b) It shall consider and make recom- mendations respecting all articles in-
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volving an expenditure of money appearing in the Warrant for any Town Meeting and shall consult with such officers and committees as it deems advisable.
(c) It shall make an Annual Report which shall be published as a part of the Annual Report of the Town and which shall include the Annual Budget and such further recommendations regarding the finances of the Town as the Committee deems advisable. ( d) It shall make such transfers from the Reserve Fund as it deems advisable
to provide for extraordinary or unforeseen expenditures.
Section 4. The Selectmen shall, as soon as may be, transmit to the Secretary of the Com- mittee copies of all articles involving the expenditure of money which are to be included in any Warrant for a Town Meeting.
Section 5. Each Town Officer and Committee charged with the expenditure of money shall, not later than the fifteenth day of December in each year, file with the Secretary of the Finance Committee detailed estimates of the amounts deemed necessary for the adminis- tration of the respective Officer or Committee for the ensuing fiscal year with explanatory statements for the reasons for any changes in the amounts appropriated for the same purposes in the preceeding year.
Section 6. In the discharge of its duty, the Com- mittee shall have free access to all books of record and accounts, bills and vouchers on which money has been or may be paid from the Treasury. Offi- cers and Committees of the Town shall upon request furnish said Committee with facts, figures, and any other informa- tion pertaining to their several activities.
Article V
Long-Term Capital Requirements Committee
Section 1. There shall be a permanent committee known as the Long-Term Capital Require- ments Committee consisting of six members whose duties shall be to study the long-term capital requirements of the Town and to report on the same at each Annual Town Meeting.
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Section 2. The Moderator of the Town shall within thirty days after the adjournment of every Annual Town Meeting, appoint to this committee for a term of three years one registered voter of the Town, who is not a member of the Board of Selectmen, Finance Committee, or Planning Board. In addition to the three members so appointed, each of the Selectmen, Finance Committee, and Planning Board shall as soon as may be after each Annual Town Meeting appoint one of their mem- bers for a term of one year. Terms of office shall com- mence immediately upon qualification and shall expire when their successors are qualified. The Committee shall choose from its members a Chairman, Secretary, and such other officers as it may determine.
Article VI
Contracts by Town Officers
Section 1.
No Officer of the Town shall in his official capacity make or pass upon or participate in making or passing upon, any sale, contract or agreement or the terms or amount of any payment in which the Town is interested and in which such officer has directly or indirectly any personal financial interest.
Section 2. No Town Officer and no salaried employee of the Town, or any agent of any such officer or employee, shall receive any compensation or commission for work done by him for the Town, except his official salary and fees allowed by law, without the per- mission of the Selectmen expressed in a vote which shall appear on their records with the reasons therefor.
Section 3. No contract involving an obligation of the Town in excess of $500. shall be binding upon the Town unless it is in writing and is signed by the officer or a majority of the committee duly author- ized or having control of the appropriation against which such obligation is incurred; and such officer or committee shall make and retain a record of every such contract.
Section 4. If so requested by the officer or com- mittee, every contract exceeding $1,000. shall be accompanied by a suitable bond for the perform- ance of the same, or by the deposit of money or security to the amount of such bond.
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Section 5,
No officer or committee shall make any non-cancellable contract in behalf of the Town, the execution of which shall necessarily extend beyond one year from the date thereof, except as other- wise provided by law, unless specific authority to do so has been given by vote of the Town.
Section 6. (a) No contract shall be awarded for purchase of materials, supplies, or equipment, or for any work or services to be performed for the Town, other than professional services and ser- vices performed by a person regularly employed by the Town as part of the duties of such employment, involving an actual or estimated cost of $1,000. or more, unless com- petitive bids have been obtained therefor. Such bids shall be invited by the sending of letters of invitation to a sufficient number of vendors, contractors, or other qualified persons to insure fair competition, or by public advertisement by at least one insertion in a newspaper published in Middlesex or Suffolk Counties and having general circulation in the Town. Such invitations shall state where plans and specifications for proposed work or purchase may be obtained, and the time and place at which bids will be opened, and shall reserve to the Town the right to reject any or all bids. All bids shall be
opened in public. No purchase, and no service or work for which a contract is proposed, shall be split or divided for the purpose of evading the provisions of this section. As far as practicable, contracts for less than $1,000. shall be awarded in such manner as to secure reasonable competition.
( b) The Selectmen may exempt a con-
tract from any or all of the provisions of the preceding paragraph if (1) the estimated amount of such contract is less than $5,000., but in the event of such an exemption proposals must be invited from at least two persons regularly engaged in supplying the materials, supplies, or equipment required or in performing the work or services required, or (2) in their opinion, an emergency exists requiring immediate action on such contract to pro- tect the health and safety of persons or property, or (3) no reasonable substitute can be obtained for the article or service to be contracted for.
Evidence indicating that such an emergency exists, or that no reasonable sub- stitute for a purchase or service can be obtained, shall be furnished to the Selectmen in writing by the officer or
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committee making such contract, and shall be kept on file with other records of such transactions.
( c) The provisions of this section shall not apply to the purchase of materials in connection with work to be performed under provisions of the General Laws, where specifications and prices are established by the State Department of Public Works.
Article VII
Legal Affairs
Section 1. The Selectmen shall be agents of the Town to institute, prosecute and defend any and all claims, actions and proceedings to which the Town is a party or in which the interests of the Town are or may be involved.
Section 2. The Selectmen may at their discretion compromise or settle any claim or suit to which the Town is a party, which does not require the payment by the Town of an amount in excess of $1,000. No settlement of a claim or suit obligating the Town in an amount in excess of $1,000. shall be made, except as authorized by law, without the consent of a Town Meeting.
Section 3. The Selectmen may annually after the final adjournment of the Annual Town Meeting appoint and employ a member of the bar in good standing, to serve as Town Counsel for the term of one year from the first day of April and until his successor is appointed. The Selectmen may appoint and employ special counsel for any matter in which the Town has an interest.
Section 4. Except for matters for which a special counsel has been appointed, it shall be the duty of the Town Counsel, if any, to conduct the prosecution, defense or compromise of claims, actions and proceedings to which the Town is a party, and the prosecu- tion of actions or proceedings by or on behalf of any Town officer or committee as such; to conduct the defense of any action or proceedings brought against any Town officer or committee as such when the Selectmen, having determined that any right or interest of the Town are or may be in- volved therein, shall so request; to conduct proceedings
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brought by or against the Assessors before the Board of Tax Appeals; to assist in the prosecution of complaints for violation of any By-Law of the Town, when requested so to do by the officer or committee enforcing the same; to examine and report upon titles to all land to be acquired by the Town; upon request of the responsible Town officer or committee to prepare or approve contracts, bonds deeds and other legal instruments in which the Town is a party or in which any right or interest of the Town is in- volved; to appear at any and all hearings on behalf of the Town whenever his services may be required; and generally to advise and act for the Town officers and committees upon and in legal matters touching the duties of their respective offices.
Article VIII
Records and Reports
Section 1. All officers and committees of the Town shall cause records of their actions taken and of their accounts to be kept in a suitable man-
ner. Said records and accounts shall, unless otherwise provided by law, be open to public inspection at any reasonable time, but shall remain during such inspection under supervision of the officer or committee having cus- tody thereof.
Section 2. All officers and committees of the Town having charge of the receipt or expendi- ture of Town money shall annually report thereon in writing referring however to the reports of the Town Accountant and Town Treasurer for the details of receipts and pay- ments, and may make therein such recommendations as they deem proper. Such reports shall be submitted to the Selectmen for inclusion in the Annual Town Report on or before the twentieth day of January of each year.
Section 3. The Annual Town Report shall contain, in addition to the reports of officers and committees as hereinbefore provided, a detailed re- port of all moneys received into and paid out of the Town Treasury in the financial year next preceding; the report of the Board of Assessors including a recapitulation of the computation of the property tax rate; the report of the Collector of Taxes of receipts, payments and abate- ments; statements of all funds belonging to the Town or held for the benefit of its inhabitants; a statement of
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the liabilities of the Town on bonds, notes, certificates of indebtedness or otherwise, and of indebtedness author- ized but not incurred, including the purposes thereof; a statement of transfers made to or from any appropriation; records or abstracts thereof of the meetings of the Town held in the previous year; a statement of all devises, bequests and donations to the Town during the preceding year, and such other matters as the said Report is re- quired by other provisions of these By-Laws to contain and as may be inserted by the Selectmen under the dis- cretion granted them by law.
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