The Town Meeting Reimagined taskforce met in February and March to review comments, suggestions, questions, and other feedback we’ve received in response to this year’s three-step process for the town budget. Thanks to the 45 plus people who sent in comments or spoke to us at the table outside the polling place on March 4th.
The committee also reviewed attendance data from past years of town meetings. Based on vote counts in the years when there were divisions during the budget debate, in-person town meeting attendance has averaged 136, with a low of 106 (2014) and high of 164 (2024).
This year, vote counts totaled 109 participants in person plus by zoom for the January 23 Budget Discussion. Additionally, 78 people watched the meeting on MMCTV live, and 65 watched the recording before the March 4 vote. 898 citizens voted by Australian Ballot. The taskforce discussed ideas for garnering higher attendance, but was generally pleased at the level of participation in this first year.
Catherine McMains noted that 252 citizens either participated in the discussion and voting of January 23 or watched it prior to the vote on March 4. In contrast, only 2 people attended the Selectboard’s formal information meeting prior to the Australian Ballot vote.
We felt that contrast underscores Susan Clark’s research that people are more likely to attend a meeting if they have a meaningful role during the meeting and if the meeting is designed to be accessible. (Susan Clark is an author and expert on Vermont Town Meetings and moderator for the Town of Middlesex.)
The co-chair, David Barrington, offered to draft a report for the Selectboard. The taskforce plans to meet again on Thursday, April 3rd, at 6pm to discuss our draft report.
The Town Meeting Reimagined Taskforce plans to meet via Zoom on March 10th to continue our discussion of the comments and suggestions we have received about this first year of a new process of creating a town budget and approving public questions. After we have considered the feedback we plan to provide recommendations to the Selectboard regarding improvements to the process for the FY2027 budget process.
Thank you to all those who have sent us comments. If you’d like to offer your thoughts you still can! Email either task force co-chair (david.barrington@uvm.edu or gsym@together.net) or click on “Leave Feedback” here: https://jerichovt.org/jericho-town-meeting-2-0?tool=survey_tool#tool_tab
As a general recap of the process for 2025:
At the 2024 Jericho Town Meeting, in March of last year, voters approved these motions:
Article VI "Shall the Town adopt all budget articles by Australian Ballot with the Selectboard directed to hold a hybrid format budget review meeting to allow citizens to adjust the budget proposal." AND
Article VII "Shall the Town adopt all public questions by Australian Ballot with the Selectboard directed to hold a hybrid format review in order to allow citizens to provide amendments."
Afterwards the Selectboard set up a taskforce to recommend and implement a process that lived up to the directive in those motions and reflected the debate at Town Meeting, 2024.
That work turned out to be complex, because of relevant state law and policy, time constraints of warning the budget and printing the Town Report, and the technology required to enable folks to follow the discussion and participate both remotely and in person. As it turned out, in 2025 there were no Selectboard-initiated public questions, so the second motion was not put into play this year.
The Selectboard approved the Task Force's recommendations and asked the group to lead the work to implement the new three-step process. It began with an October 5th “Kick-off” brainstorming meeting at the high school library. The second step was a January 23rd Budget Discussion attended by about 65 to 70 people in person, another 40 to 50 on Zoom, and about 75 who watched either through Live-Stream or the recording through MMCTV. Only those attending in person or through Zoom could actively participate by asking questions, making comments or expressing a vote.
The Jericho annual town report has now been mailed to everyone in Jericho and is also posted online. It contains the final budget as adjusted by the selectboard in response to the citizens’ input at the Jan. 23rd meeting as well as a report from the task force detailing the changes between the draft and final budgets.
The third step in the budget process is the Australian Ballot vote on March 4th.
All the reports and notes of the taskforce are available at the Town Meeting Reimagined page of the Join in Jericho website.
As this was a first, the process had its glitches. The taskforce is digesting the feedback it has received about this first year and plans to provide recommendations to the Selectboard for next year. Thank you for any comments that will help that ongoing work.
Click the image below to read the Town Report
Thank you to everyone who helped plan and manage the Town Meeting Reimagined process and to everyone who participated in the January 23 budget discussion process, whether through livestream, Zoom, in person at the high school or by watching the MMCTV recording online at https://youtu.be/0Wq2LDh6EAA.
The Jericho Town Meeting Reimagined Taskforce is planning to meet February 20 and again on March 10 to listen to feedback we receive by then and share our own observations about the budget discussion meeting on January 23 and the entire three-step Town Meeting Reimagined process. Please remember the last and perhaps most important step – the Australian Ballot vote on March 4!
We estimate that, as of January 29, more than 230 people attended the January 23 meeting or watched it online. The count may be under-stated, because there could have been more multi-person Zoom logons or livestream attendees than we were aware of, and the in-person count reflects a moment in time. But the count includes 78 in person at Mount Mansfield Union High School, 51 on Zoom real-time, 75 through MMCTV live stream real-time and 28 through MMCTV’s posted YouTube recording of the livestream. Only those attending in person or on Zoom could participate in voting, asking questions, or making a motion. More people attended the meeting than any of us could see from our own individual vantage points.
Please share any comments about what you observed or experienced, along with any suggestions for improvements in our survey form or to any member of the Town Meeting Reimagined Taskforce. Or, email either co-chair, David Barrington (David.Barrington@uvm.edu) or Gaye Symington (gsym@together.net).
We have already received valuable comments—some of them granular, related to sound systems or voting procedures—and some of them broader comments about the process of building a budget and creating ballot items. We look forward to talking about how to improve both the granular tools and the general process for the 2026 budget process and public ballot items.
I want to emphasize, the final step in the budget process is the Australian Ballot vote on Town Meeting Day, Tuesday, March 4. Polls are open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. You can request an absentee ballot from Jericho Town Clerk, Jessica Alexander (JerichoVermont@yahoo.com).
TOWN OF JERICHO
TOWN MEETING REIMAGINED
On January 23rd, 2025 the public will have an opportunity to discuss the DRAFT Budget with the Selectboard using the same format and structure as our old Town Meeting. Jericho residents may make suggestions or ask questions from the floor at the MMU Auditorium or from their homes via Zoom, and the Town Moderator will judge and record the amount of support of those present using a show of hands (in the auditorium and on zoom).
In preparation of this meeting, the DRAFT budget will be available to the public on January 17th. The DRAFT budget will be on Join in Jericho (jerichovt.org/jericho-town-meeting-2-0), and paper copies will be available from the Town Clerk at the Town Hall or via email for anyone who requests one. This will allow the public to see the budget prior to the meeting on January 23rd and prepare their ideas and comments before we gather. We are trying to ensure that we have a binder at TMR with all of the outside agency requests in it, which would provide documentation if anyone would like to see it.
After January 23rd, the Selectboard will review the public comments and the amount of support received from those present to make their final decisions on what will be included in the complete Final Proposed Budget. The final proposed budget will be sent to the printers on January 30th and a printed Annual Town Report will be mailed to residents on February 17th, as you’ve come to expect. Voting on the final proposed budget and any public questions will occur by Australian Ballot on March 4th at MMU anytime between 7 am and 7 pm.
Timeline Recap:
January 16th - Budget hearing
January 17th - Proposed budget available for public review
January 23rd - Public discussion of budget at Town Meeting - MMU or Zoom at 6 pm
January 30th - Final proof of Annual Report including Budget (+/- amendments from the public) due at printers
February 17th - Annual Report mailed to all residents of Jericho
March 4th - Voting by Australian Ballot at MMU from 7 am - 7 pm
The changes that we are working through will continue the tradition of public discussion in a Town Meeting format in a way that is more accessible to more Jericho Voters and allow Jericho to enable more people to participate in voting for the final budget. Thank you for your support as we work through this first year! We look forward to seeing you on January 23rd and March 4th, and as always, we welcome your feedback.
We ask all residents to understand that this is a new process, and the Task Force, Town staff and Selectboard are working hard to ensure everything goes smoothly. We will be collecting feedback from the public so we can make future events better.
If you are interested in the Selectboard’s budget-building process - they have been building the budget at their 2 monthly public meetings since October 2024. These meetings can be reviewed HERE (minutes, MMCTV). This process will wrap up with the Capital Budget Hearing on January 16th, during which they will also review the final numbers in the Draft Budget. Previously, the SB has had through late January to finish their proposed budget work, but last March, they committed to completing a DRAFT Budget in time for voters to have an opportunity to review and offer input before the Selectboard finalizes the Capital and Operating Budget that will be on the Ballot on March 4, 2025.
The upcoming January 23 Draft Budget Discussion is the second step in Jericho’s reimagined approach to Town Meeting, guided by the discussion and action at the 2024 Town Meeting.
As a reminder, at the request of the Select Board a taskforce of Jericho residents recommended this year’s 3-step process and has been helping to organize elements of the effort. You can find the task force's many meeting notes and updates on this website. As this is a first try, we know there will be ways to improve the process in future years.
Co-chair of the taskforce and Town Moderator, David Barrington explains, “The January 23 meeting will look very familiar to people who have attended past Town Meetings. We will go through each section of the draft budget, hold discussion and then vote on suggested changes.” In the week after the January 23 meeting, the Selectboard will post the budget to be printed in the Town Report and voted by Australian Ballot on March 4.
Dave continues, “The major differences this year are the measures the task force is taking so that more voices can be heard. The meeting will be hybrid, thanks to MMCTV, so people who are participating from their homes via Zoom can participate and vote. We’re also doing this during the evening, when fewer people are at work. Most importantly, all Jericho voters will be able to cast a ballot for or against the final budget on March 4.”
Maria Rinaldi, a member of Jericho’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee which initiated the change in process last year, emphasizes “Jericho citizens decided to put important town actions to a paper ballot. January 23 is step 2 in our process to come together as a community to do the business of the Town in as accessible and meaningful a way as possible.”
To raise a question or vote on a motion at the January 23 meeting, you’ll be able to raise your hand either in person at the MMUHS auditorium or over Zoom.
Prior to the meeting, the Masons will serve a spaghetti dinner in collaboration with the Lions Club. We are suggesting a $10 donation ($5 for kids under 12) to cover costs. You are welcome to bring a plate of cookies to share for dessert.
Also prior to the meeting, you can find tables with information about the activities of town and civic groups, as has happened in the past at Town Meeting.
SUMMARY, TIMETABLE, and SIGN UP
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The Draft Budget Discussion will be held Thursday, January 23 (with a January 27 backup date), starting at 6 p.m. in the auditorium of Mount Mansfield Union High School. Spaghetti dinner will be available starting at 5 p.m. for a suggested donation of $10 ($5 for kids under 12), thanks to the Masons and the Lions Club.
Please sign up ahead of time for dinner, the on-line meeting, or the in-person meeting at http://bit.ly/jerichobudget25. You’ll also find FAQs there. Advance registration isn’t required but will greatly help us plan logistics and food. If you prefer, you can sign up for dinner by calling the Town Clerk at 802 899 4936 x1.
The Zoom link will be found in the agenda once it is posted.
The Australian Ballot vote on the final budget will be March 4, 2025 at the high school. The polls will be open for Australian ballot voting from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
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Announcement: Draft Budget Discussion, January 23, 6pm
The first-ever Town Meeting Reimagined: Draft Budget Discussion will be held on January 23 starting at 6:00 pm at the MMU High School auditorium and on Zoom.
Starting at 5:00pm, the Masons and Lions Club are collaborating to serve a spaghetti dinner prior to the meeting, for a suggested donation of $10. The goal of the donation is to cover costs – any surplus will be donated to the Jericho Underhill Food Shelf. We will ask you to sign up for dinner so we have a sense of numbers for planning – info still to come with the link.
This meeting will be a lot like the traditional Town Meeting that you're used to, but it will be a hybrid event—you can attend and vote in person or remotely. Same friendly moderator, same great location (for those who want to attend in person). Same tables of committees and citizen action groups. New are the day, time, and the possibility of participating from the comfort of your couch! Also new is that the final vote on the entire budget will occur separately, on the first Tuesday in March.
The select board plans to post the draft budget about 10 days in advance of the January 23rd meeting. The draft budget will be posted on this site.
Led by our Town Moderator, folks will discuss and make amendments to items in the draft budget and to Selectboard public questions. As before, citizens will be able to ask clarifying questions and propose amendments to line items. Procedures for voting on the amendments will be the same as always, and now will accommodate remote participation. After the meeting, the Selectboard will make revisions to their draft, taking into account the proposed amendments, and will warn the final budget for consideration by voters on the Town Meeting Day ballot, March 4th.
We are enabling citizens to take part in the meeting from home or away. We’re asking folks to sign up ahead of time so we can manage this process well and so we have backup information about how to contact you if something happens to the wifi connection at the school. You’ll find information about signing up on the Join in Jericho website in advance (still being set up as of this writing.)
In working to further accommodate parents with young children, we will also provide a “creative corner” at the auditorium where kids can quietly color or journal or create.
A report of the meeting and proposed amendments will be included in the Town Report along with the Final Budget. There will be plenty of time for voters to inform themselves before casting their ballot on the Town’s Budget at the polls on the first Tuesday in March.
CLICK TO READ OFFICIAL WARNING OF ARTICLES FOR AUSTRALIAN BALLOT
Town Meeting Reimagined Information
