From the Town Clerk
Hello All ~ Happy May! – The Spring flowers are here, birds are back, and the leaves have popped ~ thank goodness Spring has arrived! If it is May, it must be Tax Day . . . as a reminder, quarterly taxes were due Monday, May 1st ~ thank you.
ANNUAL TOWN ELECTION ~ THANK YOU!!!
THANK YOU ALL ELECTION WORKERS, REGISTRARS, POLICE, FIRE, HIGHWAY, FACILITIES MANAGEMENT DEPARTMENTS, CONSTABLES, ELECTION EQUIPMENT STAFF, REHOBOTH POST OFFICE STAFF, POTTY-JOHN & TOWN CLERK’S OFFICE STAFF
Thank you, Rehoboth Reporter, for delaying the printing of the April Reporter to include the 4-4-23 Unofficial Election results. For official results, please check the town website under the Town Clerk’s 4-4-23 Election Results webpage @ https://www.rehobothma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif4911/f/news/tally-ate-4-4-2023-official_results.pdf or news and announcements @ https://www.rehobothma.gov/home/news/official-4-4-23-annual-town-election-results. Congratulations to all elected candidates. Reminder: If you were elected or re-elected to a position and have not been sworn in to office, please stop by the Town Clerk’s Office to take your oath of office. No elected or appointed official may take any action until they officially take their oath after being elected or appointed ~ thank you! I would personally like to thank the many people who participated in our April 4, 2023 Annual Town Election and for helping us make sure the election ran smoothly. From the Wardens, Clerks, Inspectors, Constables, Police, Fire, Highway & Facilities Management Departments, Registrars, Set-Up/Take-Down Crew, Rehoboth Post Office and Town Clerk staff, we were able to hold another successful election in our wonderful centralized polling location in the Francis Farm Museum Building. Thank you for all your hard work. There is no way we could have an election without the wonderful help of you all ~ thank you for all you do for so many! Thank you also to Sara and Billy for the delicious Vinos meals. Thank you all for your support, time, dedication, and true passion of assuring our elections are run safely, professionally, securely, and expeditiously. The Town of Rehoboth is truly fortunate to have the entire Election staff working on their behalf. Finally, thank you to the 815 of 10,282 voters who voted in the 4-4-2023 Annual Town Election! Those voters who voted in person were able to use Rehoboth’s new election equipment. Thank you all for your positive feedback.
REHOBOTH’S NEW VOTING EQUIPMENT INTRODUCED
On Tuesday, April 4, 2023 those voters who voted in-person at the Annual Town Election were introduced to Rehoboth’s new voting equipment, the LHS-ImageCast Precinct-Version-2-tabulators. After 10-years of using the LHS-Accuvotes, the election equipment started showing its age by requiring frequent repairs and one unit caught on fire while testing the tabulators for the 11-8-22 Gubernatorial Election. In 2016 we were notified that the vendor discontinued selling the Accuvote tabulators but would continue to support the Accuvotes as long as they were able to get parts; they estimated 5-8 years. As a result, due to the aging equipment, on November 28, 2022 I met with the Board of Selectmen and requested they vote to discontinue the use of the Accuvote tabulators and accept the new election tabulators as Rehoboth’s election equipment for future local, state and federal elections. The Selectmen’s certified, unanimous vote was sent to State Elections and Rehoboth’s new election equiupment has been confirmed at the State level. The reaction of Rehoboth voters, at the last election, was very positive. It was nice to see the voter’s reaction when the tabulator confirmed their vote was tabulated; a win for all involved. Thank you Rehoboth taxpayers for the new election equipment!
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT ABSENTEE VS. VOTE-BY-MAIL BALLOT APPLICATIONS
As we noticed in the Town Clerk’s Office this past election, there seems to be a lot of confusion regarding the absentee and/or vote-by-mail application process. Below are a few facts to keep in mind, especially for next year when we have four scheduled elections (March 2024 Presidential Primary, April Town Election, September State Primary and November Presidential/State Elections).
- Voters are required to file a new mailed ballot application request every calendar year. In January of each year, you may request all ballots be mailed to you for all elections scheduled from January – December of the current year by completing an Absentee or Vote-By-Mail ballot application.
- Absentee Ballot Application (Must qualify – see qualifications below*) Application @
*You can vote by absentee ballot if you qualify:
- You will be away from your city or town on Election Day
- You have a religious belief that prevents you from voting at your polling location on Election Day
- You have a disability that prevents you from voting at your polling location
- Vote by Mail Ballot Application (No excuse voting – all other voters) Application @
- Please Note: If you choose “All Elections” on your vote-by-mail or absentee application, and you are registered as an unenrolled/independent voter or registered in any party/political designation other than Democrat, Republican or Libertarian, you will need to identify on your ballot application what “Party” ballot you are requesting for the Presidential Primary and State Primary. Your choices in 2024 will be Democrat, Republican, or Libertarian. If you are registered as a Democrat, Republican or Libertarian, you can only select your party ballot during a primary election.
MAY 9th (Tuesday) ANNUAL TOWN MEETING
Now is the time to have your voice heard. Rehoboth voters have been notified, through delivery of the Annual Town Meeting Warrant to their home on Friday, April 29, 2023, that the date for upcoming Town Meeting will be Tuesday, May 9th at the Francis Farm Community Complex – Museum Building – 27 Francis Farm Road, Rehoboth; beginning at 7:00 PM; 6:00 PM voter check-in begins. There are a total of 35 Warrant Articles; therefore, should we need to have a 2-day Town Meeting, the Moderator will adjourn the meeting to Wednesday, May 10th at 7:00 PM. We will continue using the Clickers to speed up the voting process at Town Meeting. Depending on the length of discussion, if all goes well, the Moderator, Mr. Cute, is hopeful we can complete our Town Business in one day. If you have any news you would like the Moderator to share with Town Meeting on May 9th, please send to LSchwall@RehobothMA.gov ~ thank you.
The last day for Voter Registration, to be eligible to participate in the Annual Town Meeting, was Saturday, April 29, 2023. The Town Clerk’s Office was available from 8:00AM to 5:00PM. on April 29th to accommodate last minute registrations. As always, if you would like to register to vote, or change your party affiliation, you may go to the Secretary of State’s Election Division any time, 24/7, by going to www.RegisterToVoteMA.com and complete the voter registration form online. However, if you were not registered by Saturday, April 29, 2023, you will not be able to vote in the May 9, 2023 Annual Town Meeting. If you would like to check your voter status (active or inactive), you may also go to:
https://www.sec.state.ma.us/VoterRegistrationSearch/MyVoterRegStatus.aspx and see if your registration is active and what precinct you vote in.
ANNUAL TOWN CENSUS UPDATES
The Rehoboth Annual Town Census reflects our current population total, which as of April 15, 2023 is “officially” 12,916. That is an increase of 307 residents over last year’s “official” population figure of 12,609. After calls to households from our Registrars, we still have 952 census forms, out of 5,580 forms that were mailed in January, which have not been returned (Precinct I = 242 non respondents; Precinct II = 181 non respondents, Precinct III = 261 and Precinct IV = 268 non respondents). Thank you to the 4,628 residents (82.94%) who have returned their 2023 Town Census forms. For the remaining 17.06%, or 952 residents, please send in your census/street listing forms as soon as possible ~ thank you. I anticipate the Street Listings being available mid-late May for those of you who like to purchase them for $15. Please call our office before heading up to town hall to see if the Street Listings have arrived so you don’t waste a trip. I would like to thank Assistant Town Clerk, Kerrie Perkins, Administrative Aide, Jennifer Hose and the Registrars Helene Vitale, Jenn Moitozo, and Kathy Conti for your help with processing the almost 5,000 census forms we received to date. We all had another busy and successful Census season ~ thank you all!
2023 DOG LICENSES
Dog licenses are due and payable on April 1st of each year. Thank you to the 1,500+ dog owners who have already renewed their dog’s 2023 license. Any dog license not paid by May 31st will be assessed a $15.00 per dog late fee in addition to the license fee(s). Yearly we offer dog owners a 60-day grace period to pay their dog’s licenses without charging a late fee; however, we must now impose those fees effective June 1st. You may renew your dog license online (https://permiteyes.us/rehoboth/publichome.php ), by mail, or in person. Currently we have 974 dogs that are unlicensed; we hope to hear from their owners soon. Please renew your dog’s license as soon as possible and definitely by May 31st to avoid the late fees. Thanks so much!
Anyone having questions regarding any of the above information may call the Town Clerk’s Office at 508-252-6502, X3109, X3112 or X3110 or e-mail me at LSchwall@RehobothMA.gov . In closing, Kerrie, Jenn and I wish a Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms in Rehoboth. We also wish everyone a healthy and safe Memorial Day. Reminder, the Memorial Day Parade is scheduled for Monday, May 29, 2023. The Parade will start at 10:15 AM near the C.O.A. & American Legion on Bay State Road, travel through the village and end up at the Veterans’ Memorial Gazebo, Redway Plain. Hopefully by Memorial Day the weather will be rain free and absolutely perfect. Most importantly, on Memorial Day, please remember to honor all those who made the ultimate sacrifice to secure our country and protect its citizens. Please have a happy, healthy and safe month of MAY!
~ Laura ~
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here