Chapter 7 - Town Manager

Section 7-1 - Appointment

The Board of Selectmen shall appoint, a Town Manager, who shall be the chief executive officer and shall be chosen on the basis of their administrative qualifications, character and experience.  The Town Manager shall serve at the pleasure of the Board of Selectmen. 

Section 7-2 - Vacancy of Disability in the Office of Town Manager

  1. Whenever the position of Town Manager is vacant due to removal, death, resignation, absence, or disability of the Town Manager, the First Selectman or First Selectwoman, in addition to their other duties as First Selectman or First Selectwoman, shall exercise the authority and perform all the duties of the Town Manager as First Selectman or First Selectwoman for up to one hundred twenty (120) consecutive days from the time of the vacancy.   The First Selectman’s or First Selectwoman’s exercise of authority as Town Manager shall cease once a Town Manager or interim Town Manager is appointed and assumes office, or any absence or disability ceases.
  2. The Board of Selectmen may appoint an interim Town Manager for a period not to exceed one year during a vacancy in the office of Town Manager due to the removal, death, absence, disability or resignation of the Town Manager. The compensation for the interim Town Manager shall be determined by the Board of Selectmen.
  3. The provisions of Section 3-11 of this Charter notwithstanding, the interim Town Manager may be a Town official, or a former official whose last day in office was less than six (6) months ago, or any person holding an elective Town position. A Town official shall resign or take a leave of absence from any Town office held before appointment as interim Town Manager, and any person holding an elective Town position shall resign and said vacancy filled as provided for in this Charter.

Section 7-3 - Duties of Town Manager

The Town Manager shall be directly responsible to the Board of Selectmen for the administration of all offices and agencies and in charge of persons appointed by the Town Manager and shall supervise and direct the same. The Town Manager shall be the purchasing agent of the Town subject to such rules and regulations as shall be prescribed by the Board of Selectmen. The Town Manager shall keep full and complete records of the doings of their office and it shall be the Town Manager’s duty to make periodic reports to the Board of Selectmen and to attend its meetings with full right of participation in its discussions; to prepare and cause to be published, as soon as possible after the close of the fiscal year, an annual Town report; to recommend to the Board of Selectmen such measures as the Town Manager shall deem necessary or expedient; to keep or cause to be kept complete books of account showing the financial condition and financial transactions of the Town, including accounts of all funds and appropriations, and such other accounts and records, not specifically required by law to be kept by other officers, as may be prescribed by the Board of Selectmen; to purchase all supplies, materials, equipment and other commodities required by any office or agency of the Town except the Board of Education; to keep the Board of Selectmen and the Board of Finance fully advised as to the financial condition of the Town; to prepare and submit to the Board of Selectmen an annual budget and to exercise such other powers and duties as may be imposed on them by the Board of Selectmen. Except as otherwise provided in this Charter, neither the Town meeting nor the Board of Selectmen shall diminish by ordinance, vote or otherwise the powers and duties of the Town Manager, except those powers and duties imposed on them by direction of the Board of Selectmen under the provisions of this section. The Town Manager shall exercise the authority and perform all the duties of Town Manager, except as otherwise specifically provided in this Charter.

Section 7-4 - Appointments

With the approval of the Board of Selectmen, the Town Manager may appoint, and may remove, a Town Clerk, Chief of Police, a tax collector, an assessor, who shall be duly qualified, a director of health, in accordance with section 19a-200 of the General Statutes, a fire marshal and such other administrative officials or committees as may be necessary or proper for the general welfare of the Town. The Board of Selectmen may vest the appointment of any or all of such positions, officials or committees, as they deem proper, in the Town Manager alone. The Town Manager may, subject to the approval of the Board of Selectmen, perform the duties of any appointive office provided the same is not inconsistent with law. Except as otherwise provided by law, the Town Manager, subject to the approval of the Board of Selectmen, may, in filling appointive positions, combine functions and positions.

Section 7-5 - Duties of Officers Appointed by the Town Manager

Except as

otherwise specifically provided in this Charter, the duties of the officers appointed by the Town Manager shall be those prescribed for such officers by the General Statutes as amended and the ordinances of the Town. If the duties and responsibilities of an officer of the Town are not set forth in the General Statutes or ordinances of the Town, then the Town Manager, with the approval of the Board of Selectmen, shall prescribe the duties and responsibilities of such office.