Friday, October 16, 2009
Hamilton Manager Bill Becomes Law
State Senate Assistance Minority Leader Bruce Tarr (R-Gloucester) and House Minority Whip Bradford Hill (R-Ipswich) said today that legislation they sponsored on behalf of the Town of Hamilton to establish the position of town manager has been passed by the legislature and signed into law by Governor Deval Patrick.
“Passage of this act signifies a major step for Hamilton in responding to the increased demands on municipal government to address issues of growing complexity,” said Tarr. He credited the dedication of volunteers who studied the issue and devised a plan to restructure the town’s governance, saying “the new law truly reflects hard work at the local level to research changes and build consensus.”
A volunteer government study, chaired by volunteers Susan Wiltshire and Jack Lawrence, researched the town manager concept and developed the bill that is now law.
Representative Hill said, “I congratulate the government study committee for all of their hard work and advocacy on behalf of this bill. Anytime a change in government is made it is never easy, but with citizens like these in place I am sure that the transition to this new form of government will be a seamless one.”
The provisions of the bill were developed by the Government Study Committee and approved at Town Meeting last spring. Tarr and Hill pledged to work diligently to secure its passage at that time, and have honored that commitment.
