Bill
S 2573
Adopts a new Rockland Home Rule Charter, establishing a town meeting legislature with a five-member Select Board and town administrator, and rules for officials and meetings.
Status & key dates
- Bill number: S.2573 (Senate Docket No. 3100)
- Title as filed: “An Act amending the charter of the town of Rockland.”
- Introduced/Filed: July 30–31, 2025
- Current status shown: Referred to Local Government / Referred to the committee on Municipalities and Regional Government. Hearing (written testimony only) scheduled 08/14/2025. Legislative record also shows later activity (accompanying a new draft S.2716 on 11/12–11/13/2025). The petition indicates local approval was received.
- Petition sponsors shown in the bill text: John F. Keenan and David F. DeCoste. (The provided metadata also lists other sponsors/committees that appear inconsistent with the charter amendment filing.)
Purpose and intent
- To adopt a new, comprehensive home rule charter for the town of Rockland, Massachusetts, replacing or amending its existing charter. The stated intent is to reaffirm local self‑government powers under Article LXXXIX of the Massachusetts Constitution and to set the organization, powers, duties, and procedures of Rockland municipal government.
Key provisions (from the available excerpt)
- Preamble and scope: Declares the instrument the “Rockland Home Rule Charter” and articulates broad home‑rule authority.
- Division of powers: Vest legislative power in a town meeting open to all voters; vests administration of fiscal, prudential, and municipal affairs in an executive branch comprised of the select board, town administrator, and independent elected boards as provided by law.
- General powers and interpretation: States powers are to be construed liberally in favor of the town and authorizes intergovernmental agreements.
- Elected and appointed officials:
- Eligibility and term staggering rules for multi‑member elected bodies (approx. one‑third elected annually).
- Appointed members generally required to be registered Rockland voters (with some exceptions); non‑resident employees may serve as non‑voting or ex‑officio members.
- Requirement that each multi‑member body adopt written rules of procedure and file them with the town clerk.
- Requirement to post proposed rules/regulations in public places and digitally at least 7 days before adoption.
- Meeting frequency: boards/commissions must meet at least monthly unless otherwise provided; may suspend meetings for up to 8 consecutive weeks by 2/3 vote.
- Select Board:
- Composition: five members, each elected to 3‑year terms; board chooses a chair and acts by majority vote.
- Duties: general direction/management of town affairs; management of town property; authority (as agent) to prosecute/settle claims; investigative authority over town departments consistent with General Laws.
- Administrative timelines: annual town report to be printed by May 1 following the fiscal year and distributed digitally and in public locations; annual town meeting warrant to be closed 50 days before meeting and posted/distributed at least 14 days prior (special meeting warrant procedures also specified).
Who is affected
- Directly: residents and voters of the town of Rockland; elected officials (select board, town meeting members, boards/commissions), appointed officials and municipal employees.
- Indirectly: entities and individuals who interact with Rockland municipal bodies (permit/license applicants, contractors, other governments).
Procedural/other notes and gaps
- The provided text is an excerpt; later sections (the charter runs to many pages) are truncated in the supplied material, so additional substantive provisions (finance, town administrator role, boards’ specific authorities, recall, recall procedures, charter amendment processes, etc.) may appear elsewhere in the full draft.
- The header information you provided originally (a title saying the bill “Prohibits municipal corporations from adopting local laws…based on type/source of energy”) does not appear in the Rockland charter text supplied. That indicates either (a) mixed/incorrect metadata were provided, or (b) a different bill with the same number or similar caption exists. The substantive text in the packet here is a local charter amendment for Rockland and does not show a ban on municipal energy‑source restrictions.
- Legislative history entries (committees, sponsors) appear to mix state and other jurisdictions; rely on the town charter text and the docket notes (referrals, hearings, accompanying new draft S.2716) for accurate procedural status.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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