TO: Key Municipal Officials of MMA Member Cities, Towns and Plantations
FROM: MMA Nominating Committee
(Nicholas Mavodones, Chair; John Madigan; Errol Additon; Diane Barnes, and Jeffrey Robinson, Sr.)
RE: Proposed Slate for MMA Vice President & Executive Committee Members
DATE: June 13, 2008
The MMA Nominating Committee is pleased to put forth the Proposed Slate for MMA Vice President and Executive Committee Members to serve on the MMA Executive Committee in 2009. The Executive Committee is the governing body of the Maine Municipal Association and is made up of three officers and nine members. The officers are elected to serve one-year terms and the members are elected to serve staggered three-year terms and/or the remainder of a vacant term.
The MMA nominating process is taken seriously and involves careful consideration of many factors to assure that there is good representation on the MMA Executive Committee based on geographical location, population size, elected vs. appointed officials, etc.
NOMINEE FOR MMA VICE PRESIDENT
A candidate for Vice President, at the time of assuming the office, must have served as a member of the MMA Executive Committee for at least one (1) consecutive twelve-month period during the past five years.
The Nominating Committee received expressions of interest from two candidates. In keeping with a practice established several years ago, the Nominating Committee interviewed the candidates, each of whom was well qualified. The Nominating Committee has proposed the following candidate to serve as the MMA Vice President for a one-year term (January 1, 2009 – December 31, 2009):
John Sylvester, Selectman, Town of Alfred
NOMINEES FOR MMA EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Candidates for the Executive Committee must hold the position of municipal officer, as defined in 1 M.R.S.A. § 72 (12) (i.e., selectperson, councilor, mayor, alderman, assessor in a Plantation), or the position of town or city manager or chief appointed administrative official, in an active Member municipality.
Accordingly, the Nominating Committee has proposed the following candidates to serve as Executive Committee members for a three-year term (January 1, 2009 – December 31, 2011):
Mark Green, Town Manager, Town of Sanford
Ryan Pelletier, Town Manager, Town of St. Agatha
George Richardson, Jr., Chair, Board of Selectmen, Westport Island
For your reference we have provided you with the Timetable for the Election Process along with Biographical Sketch on each of the nominees.
Municipal officials who will continue to serve their respective terms on the MMA Executive Committee in 2009 are:
President: Galen Larrabee, Chair of Selectmen, Town of Knox
Immediate Past President: Anne Swift-Kayatta, Councilor, Town of Cape Elizabeth
Members: Stephan Bunker, Selectman, Town of Farmington
John Anderson, Town Manager, Town of Boothbay
William Reed, Town Manager, Town of Veazie
Sophia Wilson, Town Manager, Town of Brownville
There is a current vacant seat with a term ending December 31, 2009, which was recently created by the resignation of Scott Harriman, former Town Manager of Baileyville. Pursuant to the MMA Bylaws, the MMA President and the Executive Committee will appoint a new board member to fill the vacancy.
If John Sylvester is elected to the position of MMA Vice President (effective January 1, 2009), pursuant to the MMA Bylaws, the MMA President and Executive Committee will appoint a new board member to fill the vacancy.
PETITION PROCESS
Pursuant to the MMA Bylaws, nominations may also be made by Petition signed by a majority of the municipal officers in each of at least 5 member municipalities. Such petitions must be filed with the MMA Executive Director no later than 40 days prior to the date of the Annual Election, which is scheduled to take place at the Maine Municipal Association office on Friday, August 15, 2008. Accordingly, the deadline for Nominations by Petition is by 4:30 p.m. on Monday, July 7, 2008.
A Petition Form is enclosed for use by any municipality that wishes to nominate an additional candidate. A candidate for the Executive Committee must be a municipal officer (a selectperson or councilor of a town; a mayor, alderman or councilor of a city); a city or town manager; or the chief appointed administrative official of a member municipality. A candidate for vice president must have served on the MMA Executive Committee for at least one year.
If you have any questions or would like additional information regarding this matter, please contact Theresa Chavarie or David Barrett at the MMA office (1-800-452-8786 or, in the Augusta area, at 623-8428), or a member of the 2008 MMA Nominating Committee. Thank you.