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Town Council Adopts Rules As Required by Town Charter
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By TownUnderground
For the first time in recent memory the Town Council adopted rules as prescribed by the Town Charter at the 3/17/2025 meeting. New elected Council Chairman Ron Dunn asked the Council to review the current Town Council rules and asked if any changes were needed.
Councilor Combes wanted to have the Town attorney review state law before changing any rules. Newly elected Councilor Paul disagreed noting the rules should be reviewed. Chairman Dunn noted that the Town Charter stated that the Council must adopt rules within 10 days of the election.
“The Councilors so chosen shall meet in their capacity as the Council within ten (10) calendar days following their election for the purpose of taking their respective oaths of office, adopting rules and for the transaction of business required by law or ordinance to be transacted in such meeting.” Londonderry Town Charter Section 3.2 A
The council agreed to review the current rules. The council agreed to keep the existing rules in place with one exception. The rule stating ‘Using profanity or vulgar language or gestures’ was removed. Chairman Dunn felt the rule was in violation of the 1st Amendment. Councilor Paul noted a lawsuit in Nashua related to the use of profanity at a public meeting. Newly elected Councilor Bouchard stated he would like to wait until the end of the meeting to allow for time to digest the current rules. Acting Town Manager Kim Bernard stated that the rules must be adopted before public comment was allowed.
Councilor Paul questioned rule number two, but discussion stopped when Councilor Faber made a motion to adopt the rules as written striking the rules regarding profanity. The Council voted 5-0 to adopt the rules.
There was discussion of having the town attorney review the changes, but the council felt the change did not warrant a review.
For some history on public comment below is a presentation given to elected and appointed officials in Londonderry that specifically addressed public comment.