H 4185

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 4742  FILED ON: 5/22/2025
 HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 4185
  The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
  _________________
  PRESENTED BY:
  Brian W. Murray
  _________________
To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
   Court assembled:
   The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
 An Act relative to the nomination process for candidates for town meeting in Milford.
  _______________
  PETITION OF:
NAME:  DISTRICT/ADDRESS:  DATE ADDED:
Brian W. Murray  10th Worcester  5/22/2025
Rebecca L. Rausch  Norfolk, Worcester and Middlesex  7/1/2025
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  HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 4742  FILED ON: 5/22/2025
 HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 4185
By Representative Murray of Milford, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 4185) of
Brian W. Murray (by vote of the town) relative to the nomination process for candidates for town
meeting in the town of Milford. Election Laws. [Local Approval Received.]
  The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
  _______________
  In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
  (2025-2026)
  _______________
An Act relative to the nomination process for candidates for town meeting in Milford.
  Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:
1SECTION 1 Chapter 271 of the acts of 1933 is hereby amended by striking out section 4,
2 as most recently amended by section 1 of chapter 80 of the acts of 2019, and inserting in place
3 thereof the following section:
4Section 4. (a) Nominations of candidates for town meeting members to be elected under
5 this act shall be made by nomination papers, which shall bear no political designation, be signed
6 by not less than 10 voters of the precinct in which the candidate resides and be filed with the
7 town clerk not less than 35 days before the election. No nomination papers shall be valid in
8 respect to any candidate whose written acceptance is not thereon or attached thereto when filed.
9(b) Notwithstanding subsection (a), the fourth paragraph of section 10 of chapter 53 of
10 the General Laws or any other general or special law to the contrary, any incumbent town
11 meeting member, excluding an elected town meeting member who removes from one precinct to
12 another or is so removed by revision of precincts as set forth in section 3, or a town meeting
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13 member who filled a vacancy as set forth in section 7, may, without filing nomination papers,
14 become a candidate for reelection as a town meeting member for the same precinct in which the
15 incumbent member currently resides by giving written notice thereof to the town clerk not less
16 than 30 days before the election.
17SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon its passage.
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