As you face the front of the hall, you will see a dozen folks chosen (most by you) to help you with this process of deciding the issues facing our Town. They are from your left:

FINANCE COMMITTEE:
This is a group of five citizens elected by you for staggered three year terms. They are chosen because of their interest in town government and level of financial expertise. It is their responsibility to view the individual budget requests of individual departments with an eye on the whole spending pattern of the town. They have consulted with the different departments and make their recommendation to you based on their view of what is fiscally prudent for you to spend. Their recommendations, though of course not binding on you, should be weighed very seriously as they are your financial advisers.

MODERATOR:
This is the person behind the lectern in the center. It is the responsibility of the Moderator to "run" the meeting. He/She presents each article to the voters in turn and accepts a motion and second to bring it to the floor for discussion. The Moderator controls the discussion and all who speak must first be recognized by the Moderator. Within very broad limits, the Moderator makes the rules by which the meeting is conducted. It is therefore critical that the Moderator be neutral and unbiased on all issues before the meeting. It is his/her responsibility to see that all who wish to express an opinion or have a question on an article have the opportunity to speak, at the same time balancing this with limiting repetitive rhetoric and frivolous comment. It is also critical that he/she limit the discussion to that which deals directly with the article at hand and not the subject in general. The Moderator then calls for a vote on the article and relays the results of the vote to the Town Clerk. (See "Taking a Vote on an Article").

TOWN CLERK:
To (your) right of the Moderator is the Town Clerk. It is her/his responsibility to record the proceedings of the Town Meeting. This record becomes the only true and legal copy of events. The meeting will open with the Town Clerk reading a return of the warrant which states that the meeting has been properly posed by the Constables and everything is in order. From that point on her/his function is that of record keeper. The Town Clerk can also be very useful (with a discrete nudge and whisper - even a kick) in keeping the Moderator from forgetting a critical point or losing his/her place.

TOWN COUNSEL:
Next in line is the Town Counsel. This is a lawyer employed by the Selectmen to represent the Town in all legal matters that may arise and, when approved by the Selectmen, to advise Town Officials and Boards of their legal standing on various issues. His/her function at Town Meeting is to answer, through the Moderator, specific questions about the legality of a motion or amendment brought before the meeting. He/she will respond only when queried by the Moderator of Selectmen and will not participate in the discussion on the merits or an issue: only its legality.

SELECTMEN:
To the right of Town Counsel sit our Board of Selectmen. This three person elected board constitutes the highest level of responsibility in the town and is charged with its day to day operations. All the articles on the Town Meeting warrant have been previously reviewed by the Selectmen and, except those brought by initiative petition, have been approved by them for inclusion in the warrant. They may or may not approve of the article as presented, but have voted to bring the issue to the decision process of Town Meeting. Various Selectmen will make many of the motions and participate in much of the discussion during the evening. The Moderator may also call upon them from time to time to clarify articles of the warrant that are moved.

TOWN ACCOUNTANT AND TOWN TREASURER:
Though not seated at the front of the hall, these important Town Officials are available to the meeting. They keep a running account of money spent as the meeting progresses to insure that all is legal and that we have not exceeded our 2 ½% cap. They are also a resource to us all in fiscal matters before the meeting.

CONSTABLE:
Elected by the people and appointed by the Moderator to serve the meeting, it is the job of the Constable to see that the meeting is a secure and safe place for all, that everyone is seated except the speaker and that unruly persons are removed should the Moderator request it.

TELLERS:
These are two or more citizens, appointed by the Town Clerk, who check registered voters into the hall and, at the direction of the Moderator, count votes and report the result to the Moderator and Town Clerk who jointly tally the results.

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