AN ACT FURTHER REGULATING THE LYNNFIELD CENTER WATER DISTRICT
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 9 of chapter 336 of the acts of 1939 is hereby amended by inserting after the word “years”, the third time it appears, the following words:- ; provided, however, that any commissioner elected at said annual district meeting shall be a registered voter in said district for not less than 30 days prior to the meeting; and provided further, that if the annual district meeting is rescheduled for the protection of public health or safety or by order of the governor, the 30-day period shall not be affected and shall continue to be calculated based on the date of the originally scheduled meeting.
SECTION 2. Said section 9 of said chapter 336 is hereby further amended by striking out the fourth sentence and inserting in place thereof the following sentence:- The district shall elect by ballot at the appropriate annual district meeting a clerk of the district to serve for a term of 3 years.
SECTION 3. Said section 9 of said chapter 336 is hereby further amended by striking out the fifth sentence and inserting in place thereof the following 2 sentences:- The board of water commissioners shall appoint a treasurer of the district for a term of not more than 3 years, who shall not simultaneously serve as a water commissioner. The treasurer shall give bond to the district within 10 days of the treasurer’s appointment for the faithful performance of the treasurer’s duties in a form and amount as approved by the board of water commissioners from a surety company authorized to transact business in the commonwealth as surety.
SECTION 4. Section 10 of said chapter 336 is hereby amended by striking out the third sentence and inserting in place thereof the following sentence:- If there is a net surplus remaining after providing for the aforesaid charges, the net surplus shall be used to fund any budget deficits, capital projects, expenses, retained earnings or any other lawful purpose as the board of water commissioners may determine.
SECTION 5. Said chapter 336 is hereby further amended by striking out section 11 and inserting in place thereof the following section:-
SECTION 11. (a) The district may adopt by-laws prescribing by whom and how meetings of the district may be called, notified and conducted. The board of water commissioners shall include in the warrant for the annual district meeting, and for any special district meeting, all subjects the inclusion of which shall be requested of the board in writing, by 100 registered voters or by 10 per cent of the total number of registered voters of the district, whichever is lesser. The board of water commissioners shall call a special district meeting upon request, in writing, of 200 registered voters of the district or of 20 per cent of the total number of registered voters of the district, whichever is lesser; provided, however, that such meeting shall be held not later than 45 days after the receipt of the request; and provided further, that the board of water commissioners shall include in the warrant therefor all subjects the inclusion of which shall be requested by the request. No action taken by a district meeting shall be valid unless the subject matter thereof is contained in the warrant for said meeting. Two or more distinct district meetings for distinct purposes may be called by the same warrant.
(b) The written requests of registered voters for the inclusion of subjects in district meeting warrants shall not be valid unless the required number of registered voters: (i) sign their names; and (ii) state their residence, with street and number, if any. The board of water commissioners shall submit such written requests to the board of registrars of voters, the board of election commissioners or the town clerk who shall check and forthwith certify to the clerk of the district the number of signatures so checked which correspond to names of voters in the district and only names so checked and certified shall be counted. If there is a greater number of signatures than required under this section, the signatures which are in addition to the required number need not be certified.
(c) The district may establish rules and regulations for the management of its water works that are not inconsistent with this act or with any other provision of law and may choose such other officers not provided for in this act as it may deem necessary and proper.
SECTION 6. Section 12 of said chapter 336 is hereby amended by striking out, in lines 8 to 11, inclusive, the words “and upon conviction of any of the above wilful or wanton acts shall be punished by a fine of not more than one hundred dollars or by imprisonment for not more than six months” and inserting in place thereof the following words:- and shall be subject to penalties in amounts determined by regulations adopted by said board of water commissioners.
SECTION 7. Upon the effective date of this act, the position of elected district treasurer of the water district in the town of Lynnfield shall be abolished; provided, however, that any person holding the office of elected treasurer of the district on the effective date of this act shall serve as the first appointed treasurer until the expiration of the person’s elected term or their sooner vacating of the office. Thereafter, the position of treasurer shall be appointed as provided in section 9 of chapter 336 of the acts of 1939, as amended by section 3.
SECTION 8. This act shall take effect upon its passage.
Approved, July 31, 2024.