CHICOPEE – Of more than 40 recommendations a committee made to modernize the city’s charter, members agree three stand out as most important.
One is to expand the mayor’s term to four years. Another is to institute a recall provision so misbehaving politicians can be impeached. One would make the charter gender-neutral.
In the spring of 2021, the City Council created a committee to review the charter, saying the 130-year-old document listing major rules and regulations has never been updated, except for piecemeal changes made when problems came to light.
The committee was given a year to study the document and suggest changes. It followed that timeline, but the completed document then sat in the City Council’s office for nearly a year until June, when it was sent to the Rules Committee for review. It then voted to invite the committee in last week to discuss their findings.
“I never worked with a better group of people in my life,” Joseph Chessey, a former mayor who served as chairman of the charter committee, said when meeting with city councilors Wednesday. They were very conscious and very hard-working. They came up with many changes and some I agreed with and some I did not.”
Not simple task
The group’s final recommendations were made sometimes after a long debate and a vote by the committee. Some of those votes were unanimous and some were not, he said.
Chessey asked for a moment of silence to remember member Tom Dachowski, who died in 2022, saying he was a dedicated part of the group.
City Council President Frank N. Laflamme said changing the charter is not a simple task. It can be done only with election ballot questions brought to all the registered voters, or with the approval of the City Council, mayor and state legislators.
Another avenue: The city can conduct a formal charter review which calls for voters to elect members of a charter commission that studies and makes recommendations to be placed on the next ballot. Voters then approve or reject the changes as a package.
Laflamme said his next step will be to ask the mayor to call a special City Council meeting for September where the work of the Charter Committee can be reviewed, debated and members can decide where to take it next.
When Laflamme asked the committee what they thought were the most important issues to tackle first, all the members agreed on their priorities.
Recall provision
The committee was initially formed after people complained there was no recall provision when a city councilor was accused of posting sexist remarks. The official said women who dress provocatively and go to bars with questionable reputations should not be surprised if they are sexually harassed in a Facebook discussion. People protested and called for his ouster, but city officials said they had no way of legally forcing him to resign.
About a decade earlier, a mayor was arrested for extortion just before a November election. Although he was not reelected and his term ended in January, the city could not expel him earlier.
To create the recall option, member Al Picard said he researched provisions from communities nationwide. He and two other members used elements of different ones to create a provision appropriate for Chicopee.
“We know from our history that a recall provision would have been extremely helpful in terms of certain circumstances that occurred from various political officials throughout our history. It is vital to have it included,” Picard said.
The first step of the provision requires voters to submit a petition with a minimum of 500 signatures of registered voters demanding a recall. Once that is certified, a petition with 25% of the city’s registered voters must be submitted within 30 days. The City Council then must set a special election within 90 days.
The provision calls for any elected or appointed official who is indicted to be placed on paid administrative leave. If they are convicted, they are to be immediately fired.
Member Joshua Clark said he felt the recall amendment is the most important thing the committee did, especially since it was the reason the charter review was started.
“We wanted to include a recall but we didn’t want it to be something that was easy to do,” member Karen Rousseau said. “It is actually very arduous to even launch a recall effort and we thought that was important because it should be something that is very serious.”
Extending mayoral term
The committee said they debated a lot about the four-year term for mayor, but agreed one of the problems with a two-year term is that forces a mayor to start campaigning just 12 months after being elected.
“We felt the mayor’s time should be better spent actually being mayor. It would be in line with what other communities are doing,” Clark said, pointing out that Holyoke, Springfield, Northampton, Easthampton and West Springfield have extended mayoral terms to four years.
Less controversial, but equally important, is the effort to edit the charter so it is gender neutral. The charter refers to elected officials as “he” and “his.” As one of his first efforts on the committee, Picard said he went through the entire document and made more than 50 changes to make it neutral.
City Councilor Mary-Elizabeth Pniak-Costello lauded the group for going through the tedious process, saying the changes are important.
“How many women have served on the City Council? I was told 12, two of whom are currently serving,” she said. “I have two daughters and both are living in Chicopee and I want them to know as women that they are welcome. I can’t thank you enough.”
