What Must Be on a Warrant

Training for: Legal Notes

Every town meeting or municipal election must be called by a warrant unless otherwise provided by municipal charter (see 30-A M.R.S.A. § 2521). The warrant serves as notice of the items or “articles” of business to be transacted as well as the time, date and place of the meeting or election. A properly prepared and posted warrant is an absolute prerequisite to the validity of the meeting or election.

Maine law (see 30-A M.R.S.A. § 2523) requires a warrant to include the following:

It must be directed to a town constable or to any town resident by name, ordering that person to notify all voters to assemble at the designated time and place of the meeting.

It must specify the time and place of the meeting (and for a secret ballot election, the voting place and the polling hours, see 30-A M.R.S.A. § 2528(3)).

It must state in distinct articles the business to be acted upon; no other business may be transacted. (The first article should be to elect a moderator by written ballot to preside over the meeting, see 30-A M.R.S.A. § 2524(2).)

It must be signed by a majority of the municipal officers (selectmen or councilors) and should be dated.

The copy to be posted must be attested as a true copy (typically by the municipal clerk).

The original must include a “return” or certification signed by the person to whom it was directed and stating that an attested copy was posted in a specified conspicuous, public place in the town at least seven days before the meeting.

For more on the preparation of warrants, see Chapters 2-3 of MMA’s Town Meeting & Elections Manual, available free to members at www.memun.org.

For sample warrants – for a traditional “open” town meeting, for a secret ballot election, and for a “bifurcated” or two-part meeting consisting of both – see the Appendix 2 of the same manual.

For more on who can post a warrant and when and where to post it, see the next three issues of this magazine. (By R.P.F.)

Every town meeting or municipal election must be called by a warrant unless otherwise provided by municipal charter (see 30-A M.R.S.A. § 2521). The warrant serves as notice of the items or “articles” of business to be transacted as well as the time, date and place of the meeting or election. A properly prepared and posted warrant is an absolute prerequisite to the validity of the meeting or election.

Maine law (see 30-A M.R.S.A. § 2523) requires a warrant to include the following:

It must be directed to a town constable or to any town resident by name, ordering that person to notify all voters to assemble at the designated time and place of the meeting.

It must specify the time and place of the meeting (and for a secret ballot election, the voting place and the polling hours, see 30-A M.R.S.A. § 2528(3)).

It must state in distinct articles the business to be acted upon; no other business may be transacted. (The first article should be to elect a moderator by written ballot to preside over the meeting, see 30-A M.R.S.A. § 2524(2).)

It must be signed by a majority of the municipal officers (selectmen or councilors) and should be dated.

The copy to be posted must be attested as a true copy (typically by the municipal clerk).

The original must include a “return” or certification signed by the person to whom it was directed and stating that an attested copy was posted in a specified conspicuous, public place in the town at least seven days before the meeting.

For more on the preparation of warrants, see Chapters 2-3 of MMA’s Town Meeting & Elections Manual, available free to members at www.memun.org.

For sample warrants – for a traditional “open” town meeting, for a secret ballot election, and for a “bifurcated” or two-part meeting consisting of both – see the Appendix 2 of the same manual.

For more on who can post a warrant and when and where to post it, see the next three issues of this magazine. (By R.P.F.)