Rep Hovey Backs Bill Providing Options On Charter Revisions

HARTFORD — Legislation sponsored by State Representative DebraLee Hovey (R-112) that would give local officials greater flexibility in changing municipal charters was approved by the House of Representatives.

Rep Hovey represents the 112th General Assembly District covering Monroe and part of Newtown.

A municipal charter is a legal document that, aside from certifying a community’s name, establishes regulations that local leaders follow in managing their city or town.

The proposal Rep Hovey has sponsored provides a local “authority,” such as a board of selectmen or city council, with the option to instruct its charter revision panel to focus on a narrow set of issues. Under current law, everything within a charter is open for scrutiny — and change — any time a community opens up its charter for even the slightest revision.

Consequently, many local officials with concerns about the time and cost associated with public hearings and meetings hesitate to attempt any sort of change, leaving many municipal charters out of sync with the times.

“Cost considerations can be a big deterrent when local officials think of undertaking a charter revision,” said Rep Hovey. “This will give greater flexibility to those officials who may want to address some significant issues in their municipal charter by allowing them to narrow their focus and thereby reduce associated costs.”

The lawmaker noted that the mechanisms that trigger a charter revision, either by the municipal “authority” or through petition, remain unchanged by the bill. Residents would maintain their ability to provide input on a revision commission’s charge when the panel is created by the local authority.

The local authority would also retain its responsibility to decide whether to act on the final body of suggestions recommended by the revision commission.

Flexibility provided by this legislation would not be available to leaders in communities where it has been more than 12 years since the last comprehensive charter review. HB 5318, An Act Concerning the Revision of Municipal Charters, has gone to the State Senate for possible action.