Charter panel votes 6-4 to cap board terms at 12 years

Other Committee · Meeting of April 6, 2026

New Canaan charter panel votes 6-4 to cap appointed board service at 12 years. The Charter Revision Commission, working through a draft charter ahead of an April 14 public hearing, also voted 8-2 to keep the Board of Selectmen at three members rather than five, with member Russ Kimmes arguing five would let selectmen caucus outside public view. Commissioner Angela Jameson dissented on term limits, saying "we are grasping for a solution to a problem that isn't really one here in New Canaan." The panel separately deadlocked 5-5 on striking gender-specific "selectman" language from the charter, with member Karen absent to break the tie, and voted to require the full Board of Selectmen, rather than just the first selectman, to review every applicant for appointed boards and commissions, with a 120-day deadline before the Town Council must step in.

In the full story:

• The complete report — 1,048 words

Source: the Other Committee meeting of April 6, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

The Full Article

NEW CANAAN — April 6, 2026 — The New Canaan Charter Revision Commission voted 6-4 Monday to recommend a 12-year consecutive term limit for members of all appointed town boards and commissions, resolving a debate that had split the panel since late March.

Commissioners also voted 8-2 to keep the three-member Board of Selectmen intact rather than expand it to five, and advanced draft language requiring the full Board of Selectmen, not just the first selectman, to review every applicant for an appointed board or commission seat.

The Full Story

The commission met for a special working session to continue its article-by-article review of a draft revised charter, ahead of a public hearing scheduled for 5 p.m. April 14. Commissioners had before them the first 27 pages of a draft report and spent the bulk of the roughly two-hour meeting on Article 3, which governs the first selectman, the Board of Selectmen and the process for filling vacant seats.

On appointments, the commission agreed that vacancies on appointed boards and commissions should be posted on the town website with a link allowing electors to apply, and that the Board of Selectmen as a whole, rather than the first selectman alone, should review all applications before voting in a noticed public meeting on a nominee. Commissioners also changed draft language so that if the Board of Selectmen fails to fill a vacancy within 120 days, the Town Council "shall," rather than "may," fill it, and added the Planning and Zoning Commission to the list of appointed bodies whose members are subject to Town Council confirmation, joining the Board of Finance, the Ethics Board and the newly renamed Audit Board.

On board size, member Russ Kimmes argued that expanding the Board of Selectmen to five would let members caucus outside public view, undercutting the transparency the charter is meant to protect. The commission voted 8-2 to retain three members, with commissioners Jennifer and Joe Po dissenting.

A separate proposal to strike gender-specific language allowing an elected official to be called "selectman," "selectwoman" or "select person" ended in a 5-5 tie, with member Karen absent from the vote. Chair asked that the item be revisited once Karen can cast a tiebreaking vote at a future meeting.

The commission's longest discussion concerned term limits. At its March 24 meeting, commissioners had split roughly 6-5 in favor of exploring limits further. On Monday, member Steve Case proposed capping service at three consecutive terms with a mandatory break, a concept the commission ultimately narrowed to a flat 12-year consecutive cap applying to all appointed boards and commissions, including the Audit Board, whose existing nine-year limit would be extended to 12. Members currently serving would finish their present term before the cap applies, though the commission left unresolved how much additional transition time a sitting chair might get. The commission separately voted unanimously, 10-0, to leave the charter's existing rule that each board or commission elects its own chair annually, rejecting a proposed formal rotation requirement.

Commissioner Angela Jameson argued against the term-limit cap, saying data on how long members serve does not show a real problem in New Canaan.

"I think we are grasping for a solution to a problem that isn't really one here in New Canaan," she said, warning that capping tenure on land-use boards such as Planning and Zoning could cost the town institutional expertise.

"That's my two cents. So I am in favor of keeping it at three, even though, yes, it does make some of the day-to-day work a little more difficult," Kimmes said of the Board of Selectmen vote.

"I would say nobody can serve more than three consecutive terms, and then they sit out a term," Case said, describing the proposal that became the basis for the 12-year cap.

Commissioners also reviewed Article 3-5, covering vacancies in elected offices, and voted to strike language requiring an unaffiliated official's replacement to also be unaffiliated, after the commission's legal advisor, Ira Bloom, said he was not certain that requirement exists under state statute. The commission left the 30-day filling requirement, borrowed from board of education vacancy rules, out of that section pending legal review.

Why It Matters

The Charter Revision Commission's recommendations, once finalized, will go before New Canaan voters and can only be revisited roughly once a decade, several commissioners noted during Monday's meeting. The 12-year term-limit proposal would reach into every appointed town board, including Planning and Zoning, the Board of Finance, the Ethics Board and the Audit Board, changing how long residents who volunteer for those posts can serve. The appointment-process changes would shift who screens candidates for those same boards, moving that authority from the first selectman alone to the full Board of Selectmen. The commission holds a public hearing on its work at 5 p.m. April 14, followed by a regular working meeting, with another special session set for 4 p.m. April 13.

Key Motions & Votes

- Vote: Reorder Monday's meeting agenda to take up charter-article review first Tally: Approved unanimously

- Vote: Retain the Board of Selectmen at three members rather than expand to five Tally: For: 8, Against: 2, Abstain: 0, Total: 10

- Vote: Strike charter language allowing "selectman," "selectwoman" or "select person" titles Tally: For: 5, Against: 5, Abstain: 0, Total: 10 (Tie; member Karen was absent. Matter continued to a future meeting for a tiebreaking vote.)

- Vote: Leave unchanged the charter provision that each board or commission elects its own chair annually; reject a formal chair-rotation requirement Tally: For: 10, Against: 0, Abstain: 0, Total: 10

- Vote: Impose a 12-consecutive-year term limit on membership in all appointed town boards and commissions Tally: For: 6, Against: 4, Abstain: 0, Total: 10

• Action: Approved draft minutes of the March 24 full-commission meeting, as amended — one commissioner opposed

- Vote: Approve draft minutes of the March 25 full-commission meeting, as amended Tally: Approved unanimously

- Vote: Approve subcommittee Group 1 minutes for March 11 and March 17 Tally: Approved unanimously

- Vote: Approve subcommittee Group 2 minutes for February 26 and March 19 Tally: Approved unanimously

- Vote: Approve subcommittee Group 3 minutes Tally: Approved unanimously

Source

Town Of New Canaan: Charter Revision Commission meeting, April 6, 2026