Town of Westwood, MA
Home MenuHow to Submit a Citizen Petition
A Message from the Town Administrator
Several times a year we get asked how a citizen can submit a question/warrant article to the Town to be placed on an upcoming town meeting warrant. Here is a quick summary to help clarify the process:
The Board of Selectmen is the body responsible for developing the “warrant”, or the list of articles, that is presented to the voters at town meeting for consideration and vote. Most articles are developed and submitted by the various town officials, but citizens are able to submit an article to be placed on the warrant.
The petitioner(s) should write the question that they wish to bring to Town Meeting. Petitioners are encouraged to contact the Town Administrator, Town Counsel, Town Clerk, or other town staff if they have any questions about how to actually write the article. We may be able to help with the basic formatting of the article and Town Counsel can provide legal advice. The petition itself is typically a sheet that includes the written article at the top, followed by spaces for the petitioners to sign below. A sample copy of this form is attached. If you want to see some sample language of an older petition voted at town meeting, look at the previous year’s town reports (in person at the town offices or on-line on the Town’s website).
To be a valid petition, it must be signed by at least 10 registered voters of the town. Petitioners are encouraged to obtain more signatures. Signatures should also include the street and street number to allow the Town Clerk’s office to correctly check that the individual is a registered voter. (Note: For a Special Town Meeting, the citizen’s petition must be signed by at least 100 registered voters. When you are going out to collect the signatures, please note that every copied petition page must have the exact same language in the article so the citizens know what they are agreeing to.
The signed petition should go to the Selectmen’s office who will check to be sure it has the required number of signatures. Then it is forwarded to the Town Clerk’s office to determine which of the signatures are registered voters. The Selectmen must then place the appropriate article on the next town meeting warrant.
Please be mindful that any article dealing with a zoning bylaw change must be reviewed by the Planning Board at a public hearing, so it is important to contact that office regarding your proposed article as early as possible Financial articles require that the source of the funds be identified in the article.
For each town meeting, there is a deadline by which both town officials and citizens must submit their articles. For the May town meeting, the deadline for submitting articles is the first Selectmen’s meeting in January. It is the lead petitioner’s responsibility to speak to the article at all public hearings and at Town Meeting. For more details, feel free to call or email me at (781) 326-4172.
Sincerely,
Michael Jaillet, Town Administrator