Tensions at Town Council Meeting over Board of Finance Appointment
- Avery Martin
- 4 minutes ago
- 3 min read
On Monday, the controversy surrounding the appointment of Robert Britton to the Board of Finance was once again on the agenda, this time at Town Council.
It was the Council that unanimously voted Britton onto the Board of Finance on July 13, to fill the spot left by the death of Edward Pocock Jr. However, leadership for the town Democratic Party subsequently challenged the appointment, saying that giving the decision to the Council goes against the Town Charter.
Section 208 of the charter deals with vacancy appointments. The online copy of the charter does not clarify who is responsible for filling sudden vacancies on the Board of Finance, but it does appear to state that the town council does not have the authority to appoint a new member.
“Vacancies and elective offices, except in the Board of Education, the Planning and Zoning Commission and the Board of Finance, from whatever cause arising, shall be filled by the council for a period until the next town election,” it reads.
However, during Monday’s meeting, Town Attorney Louis Martocchio III asserted that the appointment was legal.
“I want to make clear, as I did in my opinion, which I think has been shared with a lot of people, that I do believe the Town Council had the authority [to make the appointment],” said Martocchio.
Martocchio explained that, in 2000, the Library Board was changed from an elected board to an appointed board, which made it necessary to remove mention of that board from the text of Section 208. In the process of making that change, other alterations were introduced into the text that left it incomplete and potentially unclear.
In 2009 and 2010, Martocchio went on, the Town Council appointed two individuals to the Board of Finance, including Pocock, and no issues with the process or charter were raised.
Furthermore, in 2010, Southington residents voted on a referendum question that read, "Shall Section 208 of the Southington Town Charter be amended to allow vacancies in elective offices to be filled by the board or commission with such vacancy?" 8,906 Southington residents voted against boards appointing their own members, while 5,897 voted for it. This, Martocchio argued, clearly indicated that it was the will of the people to have Town Council fill such vacancies.
Chris Palmieri, leader of the Democrats on the Council, said that his party was pursuing legal remedies regarding the issue.
“That's [Martocchio’s] opinion, and there's other opinions. So again, I'm not going to comment on the legal matter,” said Palmieri.
Chairman Paul Chaplinsky, a Republican, reiterated the points made by Martocchio.
“To restate what the town attorney said, in 2010, there was a referendum question that went to the electorate that said, ‘Shall all elected vacancies be appointed by their own boards?’ And that went to referendum, and the voters voted on that and resoundingly said no, it should stay with the current language. So that's kind of where we are,” said Chaplinsky.
Earlier in the meeting, Chaplinsky and Palmieri engaged in what at times was a heated back-and-forth over the way the town accounted for $833,934 in state aid, although no new information was brought to light during the exchange.
Aside from the controversies, there was more positive news for the Council to consider. Town manager Alex Ricciardone reported that the Finance Department closed the books on Depaolo Middle School renovations from over ten years ago.
“[The Finance Department] closed out the Depolo Middle School renovations from over 10 years ago. That grant from the State of Connecticut has been sitting in file cabinets for over 10 years. Initially, when we put in for the grant, the state was looking for over a six-figure reimbursement back to the town from ineligible costs. So they sent us a preliminary bill for well over $100,000. We dug in, got more information, pulled the meeting minutes, dug up boxes,” said Ricciardone.
The state is expected to send a $2.6 million dollar check to the town to fulfill the grant that paid for the 2013 renovations.
