Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

SECTION 1. Section 3-1 of Part III of section 1 of chapter 103 of the acts of 1994 is hereby amended by striking out subsections (a) and (b) and inserting in place thereof the following 2 subsections:-

(a) Composition. There shall be a school committee composed of nine members. One member, to be known as the at-large school committee member, shall be nominated and elected by and from the voters at large. Eight members, to be known as district school committee members, shall be nominated and elected by and from the voters of each district, one such member to be elected from each of the eight districts into which the city is divided in accordance with section 7-4.

(b) Eligibility. Except as otherwise provided by this charter, any voter shall be eligible to hold the office of at-large school committee member, and a district school committee member shall be a voter and resident of the district from which the school committee member is elected. An at-large school committee member who shall remove from the city during the term for which such school committee member was elected shall be deemed to have vacated the office of at-large school committee member and the office shall be considered vacant. A district school committee member who shall remove from the district during the term of office for which such district school committee member was elected shall be deemed to have vacated the office of district school committee member and the office shall be considered vacant. Any vacancy in the office of at-large school committee member or district school committee member shall be filled in accordance with section 3-2.

SECTION 2. Section 7-2 of Part VII of section 1 of said chapter 103 is hereby amended by striking out subsection (a) and inserting in place thereof the following subsection:-

(a) Signature requirements. The number of signatures of voters required to place the name of a candidate on the official ballot to be used at a preliminary election shall be as follows:

For the office of councilor-at-large the signature requirement shall be not less than fifty. For the office of the at-large school committee member the signature requirement shall be not less than fifty. For the office of district councilor the signature requirement shall be not less than fifty. For the office of district school committee member the signature requirement shall be not less than fifty.

SECTION 3. Notwithstanding any general or special law or charter provision to the contrary, the city of Chelsea shall conduct a special municipal election for the purpose of electing at-large and district school committee members in accordance with sections 1 and 2. This special election shall be held on the date of and in conjunction with the biennial state election in 2004, and the preceding preliminary election shall be held on the date of and in conjunction with the regular state primaries in 2004. Persons elected to serve as at-large and district school committee members at this special election shall hold their office for a one-year term commencing January 1, 2005 and until a successor is elected and sworn in following the next regularly scheduled municipal election held in 2005. Persons elected to serve as school committee members in 2003 shall hold their office for a one-year term, ending December 31, 2004.