Town Organization & Government

The Town of Hartford is organized and governed under the traditional town meeting form of government of many New England communities. This form of government is thought by many to be the purest and most direct form of democracy remaining in the United States today.

Under this form of government, residents gather each year in March to make their opinions heard and cast their votes on matters of public interest such as the Annual Budget, adoption of local ordinances, and other policy-related matters.

A nonpartisan Board of Selectboard, elected for 2- and 3-year staggered terms, is then charged with managing the affairs of the community. Generally speaking, the selectboard insure that all of the duties imposed upon the town and its other officials or staff are performed in a timely and cost-effective manner. More specifically, selectboard may enact ordinances and rules in areas including, but not limited to, the following:

• Animal control
• Annual operating budget and supervision of town expenditures
• Filling vacancies for local officials
• Issuance of licenses for various activities:
  • Junkyards
  • Liquor sales
  • Restaurants
• Maintaining public highways
• Managing solid waste
• Nuisances
• Public recreation programs
• Short-term borrowing
• Traffic regulation
• Warning of the annual Town Meeting
• Zoning bylaws

Town Manager

Hartford voters have elected to appoint a professional town manager to assist the Board of selectboard with the execution of their duties. Under this form of government, many of the day-to-day responsibilities traditionally charged to the selectboard are transferred to the person holding this position. The town manager is responsible for:

• Administration of the annual budget
• Enforcing personnel policies
• Hiring and firing of staff
• Managing the day-to-day affairs of the town
• Setting salaries
• Supervision of employees

The town manager also functions as the delinquent tax collector and as the director of personnel and purchasing. At all times and in all matters, the manager is subordinate to and takes direction from the Board of Selectboard.

Items Discussed at Board Meetings

The board meets every other Tuesday night to take action on a wide variety of public business. These meetings are held in the town offices and begin at 6:00 p.m. Persons wishing to have specific items considered by the board must submit these materials in writing no later than Noon on the Wednesday preceding the Selectboard's scheduled meeting. The public is welcome to attend.

Other matters of interest or concern may be forwarded directly to the town manager's office for immediate attention. Please see the town directory for office hours and telephone numbers.

Job Classification & Compensation Plan

Recommendation for the Town of Hartford is Now Available

Condrey and Associates, Inc. of Atlanta, Georgia, have provided the town with a job classification and compensation plan recommendation (PDF) based on survey's of various town's of comparable size and staffing. The information contained within this report is considered a recommendation and does not represent any decision made by the Town of Hartford or the select board. All information will be reviewed and considered in a manner consistent with that of any other matter within the Town of Hartford; fairly and without prejudice. If you cannot access this PDF, please contact the Town Office 802-295-9353 and a copy will be provided.