The Chester Charter Commission formally submitted the proposed draft of its Town Charter to the Board of Selectmen (BOS) on Feb. 14, marking another step in a process that has been ongoing since the commission’s first meeting in June 2023.

At its meeting on Feb. 13, the commission unanimously voted to send a now-revised, proposed draft charter and cover memo to the BOS, said Chair Richard Strauss, bringing the charter one step closer to potentially serving as a new town document that would refashion the municipal structure of Chester.

The document contains new provisions that the commission decided to include following public comment at its most recent hearing on Jan. 31. At that hearing, most public comment centered around the elimination of the Board of Finance and the transfer of fiscal authority and responsibilities to an expanded BOS with additional support from a Fiscal Advisory Committee. Given the strong criticism that the commission faced by numerous residents over this change, as those residents felt that granting nearly all fiscal powers to the BOS would amount to an imbalance of power, the commission has responded by including the creation of a Financial Accountability Board in its revised charter.

As a part of the fiscal budget process, this board would be responsible for “developing the long-range capital plan, the five-year capital budget, and the one-year capital expenditure budget,” said Strauss. He added that the process would start with the BOS, which “would set the theme or message for the development of the budget,” which, at the BOS’s direction, would be assembled by a town administrator and finance director.

The town administrator and finance director would return to the BOS with a budget, which would then be recommended to the Financial Accountability Board. From there, the Financial Accountability Board would modify the BOS’s budget and then bring it to a public hearing.

“At the public hearing, the Board of Selectmen would be presenting the Financial Accountability Board's proposed budget that would include identifying any modifications made by the Financial Accountability Board and the rationale for those changes,” said Strauss.

This cooperation and correspondence between the board and BOS would be a staple of what is essentially a balance of powers that should provide “transparency and accountability” for taxpayers regarding the town’s financial decisions, according to Strauss.

“In a nutshell, the changes that were made [were] to add oversight transparency and accountability, while having balance in the fiscal authorities that the commission believes will be in the best interest of the town,” Strauss said.

Like with the current home-rule style of government, the fate of the fiscal year budget’s would ultimately be in the hands of the public, which can vote whether or to approve it at a town meeting.

The Financial Accountability Board would consist of five members who would all be elected officials. They would initially be up for election to the board for two-year terms for its first iteration and then four-year terms thereafter. Strauss said that having staggered terms for officials that are offset from the election of selectmen “achieves our goal of having overall continuity” on town boards and commissions.

“By having them all five serve at the same time, you provide for more voter choice and who is elected to those positions,” Strauss said. “Plus, separating them provides a focus for the electorate on those two bodies separately to really consider the election of who will represent the town on both of those boards.”

As of the Feb. 14 submission, the BOS has 45 days to hold a public hearing on the proposed charter, with the latest date being Saturday, March 30. After the public hearing, the BOS has 15 days to decide whether it wants to make recommendations to the commission for further changes. If there are no recommendations by the end of that 15-day time frame, the BOS will have 15 more days to decide to approve or reject some or all of the proposed charter provisions.

“But if they do have recommendations, then it goes back to the charter commission, they have 30 days [to revise],” said Strauss.

To help Chester residents better understand the background, purpose, and aspects of the charter, the commission will be providing an opportunity for the public to meet with its members, ask questions, and receive an overview on how the municipal structure of Chester would function differently than its current form.

Strauss added that the commission is looking to establish an “informational charter website” that further informs residents on the background of the crafting of the charter, along with various provisions and terms.

The revised charter is available on the commission web page at https://www.chesterct.org/charter-commission.