SENATE DOCKET, NO. 3157        FILED ON: 1/4/2021

SENATE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 2998

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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January 4, 2021

To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives,

Pursuant to the provisions of Article II, Section 8, Paragraph 1, Clause (2) of the Amendments to the Constitution, as appearing in Article LXXXIX of said Amendments, I am filing for your consideration the attached legislation entitled “An Act Relative to the Municipal Caucus in the Town of Concord.”

I am filing this special legislation at the request of the Concord Select Board.

The legislation will permit the Town to cancel its 2021 municipal caucus, which pursuant to town charter must be held during the month of January, if the Select Board concludes holding the caucus would constitute a threat to public health and safety due to the 2019 novel coronavirus known as COVID-19.  The legislation will permit the Town to allow voters instead to use nomination papers to nominate candidates, as generally provided pursuant to sections 7 and 10 of chapter 53 of the General Laws.  This legislation is consistent with the procedures enacted pursuant to section 3 of chapter 92 of the Acts of 2020, by which municipalities were permitted to cancel municipal caucuses scheduled to occur between March 23, 2020 and July 31, 2020 because of COVID-19 and to use nominating papers instead to nominate candidates.  Timing considerations do not permit the Town to pursue this change through normal procedures.

I urge your prompt consideration of this bill. 

Respectfully submitted

Charles D. Baker,

Governor

SENATE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 2998

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the One Hundred and Ninety-First General Court
(2019-2020)

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An Act relative to the municipal caucus in the town of Concord.

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. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of any other general or special law to the contrary, the town of Concord may act by vote of its select board to cancel the municipal caucus scheduled to occur between January 1, 2021 and January 31, 2021 if such board concludes that holding the municipal caucus would constitute a threat to the public health and safety due to the 2019 novel coronavirus, also known as COVID-19. If said caucus is cancelled, nomination papers shall be used to nominate candidates pursuant to sections 7 and 10 of chapter 53 of the General Laws; provided, however, that such nomination papers shall be signed by not fewer than 10 registered voters of the town; provided, however, that to the extent that the forty-ninth day prior to the date of the election has passed, nomination papers shall be made available immediately, and shall be returned to the office of the board of registrars for certification no later than the date designated by the town clerk, which shall be no earlier than 36 days and no later than 32 days prior to the date of the election; provided further, that candidates shall be notified if their names will be placed on the ballot on the next business day after the deadline for filing, and the time for filing withdrawals and objections shall expire at 5:00 p.m. on the following business day.

SECTION 2. If this act does not take effect until after the date of a scheduled municipal caucus during the governor’s March 10, 2020 declaration of a state of emergency, the actions of the select board and local election officials to postpone a municipal caucus shall be ratified, validated and confirmed as if this act had been in place prior thereto.

SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon its passage.