SAUGUS — The Finance Committee sat down to discuss the first batch of articles the upcoming Town Meeting, with a decent portion looking into Article 33 on e-bikes.
The first few articles discussed focused on funds, and when completed, Chair Kenneth DePatto noted that the sponsor of Article 33, Elizabeth Marchese, was at the meeting, so the Committee agreed to discuss it.
DePatto noted that due to the length of the article, he’d only be reading part of it.
“Article 33 to see if the town will vote to amend the Town of Saugus bylaws by adding a new section regulating the operation of electric bicycles and motorized micromobility devices within the town, or take any other action relative thereto,” DePatto read.
The article continues on to list the different type of devices and information on them.
“I read through a lot of it. It’s very lengthy and very comprehensive. My first question, Ms. Marchese, is did you consult with the police chief and town counsel?” he asked.
Marchese said that town counsel had reviewed it for form, but could not review it for legality because that would be the job of the Attorney General’s Office to ensure it confirmed with Mass General Laws.
“We did try to set up a meeting with him (Chief Michael Ricciardelli). Things didn’t work out, so I emailed it over to him and to his secretary asking for his comments or any input he had on it. There was no response,” she said.
DePatto said that those questions would most likely be asked again during Town Meeting.
The Finance Committee focused on discussing the fines involved in the article.
The first offense included a written warning, the second offense is a $50 fine, the third offense is a $150 fine, and the fourth offense, and anything after that, would be a $300 fine.
“Since you did talk to town counsel, I’m sure that these fall within the guidelines of both state and our charter,” DePatto said, and Marchese confirmed.
If Article 33 is passed at Town Meeting, it will then head to the AG’s office.
“I’m always concerned about when we make a recommendation on something, that it gets kicked back. It doesn’t look really good for the town or us, but that’s not our responsibility. She has spoken to town counsel on it, so if it meets form and everything, we can let them vet it on the floor of Town Meeting, and if it does come back from the attorney general’s office with recommendations for connections or non-compliance with state constitution… Town Meeting will have to take it up at the next annual.” DePatto said.
Town Meeting member Peter Manoogian confirmed that the AG’s office typically asks for extensions if an article returns, so it would get pushed to the next annual meeting, unless it had a Special Town Meeting.
“It would be up to the Board of Selectmen or the proponent of the article to make sure it got back in again,” he said. “… The town clerk is pretty good at letting people know if things do come back.”
Manoogian continued that in the past articles bounced back because fines weren’t consistent with a something like a state statute.
The Finance Committee unanimously voted yes to recommend the article.
