| Open Town Meeting |
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| meetings | |
| local government in the united states | |
| new england | |
| government of massachusetts | |
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Open Town Meetings are required of Massachusetts towns with fewer than 6,000 residents and optional for those with 6,000 or more residents. The Board Of Selectmen will call the town meeting by issuing the Warrant , which is the list of items--known as articles--to be voted on, with descriptions of each article. The Moderator officiates the meeting by reading each article, explaining it, and making sure the rules of parliamentary procedure are followed. He/she interprets voice votes and counts other votes. The Finance Committee makes recommendations on articles dealing with money, and often drafts the proposed budget. The Town Clerk serves as the clerk of the meeting by recording its results. Town Counsel makes legal recommendations on all articles of the warrant, to ensure town meeting is acting lawfully. All registered voters are free to attend and vote on any and all articles. Open Town Meetings function largely the same as a Representative Town Meeting , except that ''all'' registered voters can participate or vote. COMPARE TO
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