Town Clerk Preparing Absentee Ballots For Charter Vote

By John Voket

Town Clerk Debbie Aurelia told The Newtown Bee this week that qualified voters can pick up absentee ballots beginning Thursday, March 10, for the referendum to be held locally on March 29. The referendum will seek voter approval or rejection of the most recent proposed Newtown Charter revision.

To achieve the revision, 15 percent of the town’s registered voters — or about 2,400 individuals — must approve modifying budget ballots to request that each voter: (a) approve the budget, or (b) reject the budget because it is too high, or (c) reject the budget because it is too low.

If the 15 percent margin of Yes votes is not achieved, the revision fails. If approved by more than 15 percent of local registered voters, the charter changes would be effective on April 5.

This would permit the ballot questions to be printed on all subsequent local budget ballots, as well as absentee ballots issued ahead of the first 2011 budget referendum scheduled for Tuesday, April 26.

Any qualified registered voter may vote by absentee if unable to vote in person due to:

*Illness or physical disability

*Absence from town during voting hours

*Religious beliefs which forbid secular activity

*Active US military service

*Service as an election official at a polling place other than his/her own polling place

The applications for absentee ballots are available at the town clerk’s office Monday through Friday, 8 am to 4 pm, or voters may download an application from the town website at www.newtown-ct.gov.  

Special hours for absentee voting will be held on Saturday, March 26, from 9 am to noon at the town clerk’s office at the Newtown Municipal Center, 3 Primrose Street. 

According to the explanatory text provided with the charter revision ballot, the present charter in Section 6-14 provides for a single town budget to be either accepted or rejected by the voters.  Approval of the proposed charter amendment continues to present voters with a single town budget, but provides for those voters who reject it to indicate whether they are rejecting the budget because it was “too low” or “too high”. 

All of the “No” voters are added together to determine if the town budget is to be accepted or rejected.  The budget is accepted only if the number of “Yes” (item a.) voters exceeds the sum of the “No” (items b. and c.) voters. If the budget is rejected, the voter indication of “too low” or “too high” is advisory only relative to the subsequent budget deliberation of the town budgetmaking authority.

Anyone with questions regarding absentee ballots or the scheduled charter referendum should contact the town clerk’s office at 203-270-4210.