Lyman is set to send its first-ever charter to voters Nov. 6, and the proposal, if approved, will mean more clarity for town officials and processes, as well as clearing up conflict of interest issues that have arisen in recent years.

One major issue is the elimination of the ability of town employees to serve on the board of selectmen. This is an important change, as it will eliminate the possibility for conflicts of interest, which have caused unrest in the recent past.

Selectmen doing town work was part of the reason why some residents sought, and succeeded in, the recall of Selectman Norman Hutchins in November 2011. The conflict reared its head even more blatantly in June 2011, when Steve Marble was elected to the board of selectmen while serving concurrently as the town’s transfer station operator. The town’s other board members at the time said this conflict of interest could put them in some sticky situations, particularly when there were only three people on the board.

If a vote about the transfer station were called, and Marble had to abstain, the potential for a tie existed before the board expanded to five members in November 2011. Also, despite his insistence that he is not a department head, Selectman Leo Ruel and Hutchins said Marble managed the station’s staff and helped draft the department’s annual budget request. The two initiated a lawsuit to settle the matter, but were forced to eventually drop it due to public outcry.

Per the new charter, Marble would be able to serve out his term, but town employees would be barred from serving on the board in the future.

This is important in any municipality, to guard against both the appearance of impropriety and actual impropriety.

One area where the proposed charter misses the mark, however, is in that elected officials outside of the board of selectmen may be compensated and employed by the town.

The prime example is Road Commissioner Maurice St. Clair, who, while he is not paid, gets health benefits from the town and does the majority of its road work.

Now, St. Clair has announced that he is on a one-man mission to defeat the charter, stating publicly at a recent charter commission meeting that he could not support the charter due to the outlining of a bid process.

The charter would require selectmen to go out to bid for any expenditure of $10,000 or more. As part of that section, the charter states that the selectmen can decide whether to require a bid bond and a performance bond for the contractor. For purchases between $5,000 and $9,999, the charter requires at least three price quotes, but no formal bidding process.

Bidding is standard practice in most municipalities with charters, and should be done not only to ensure that the town is getting the best offer, but to ensure that taxpayers are getting the best deal. The bid and performance bonds further protect the town and taxpayers by insuring through a bank or insurance company that a contractor will complete a job satisfactorily.

The charter doesn’t prohibit St. Clair from doing work in the town, it just outlines a formal process for project in excess of $10,000. And he will be able to bid on those projects just like everyone else. If he doesn’t like the new process, he doesn’t have to be road commissioner. It’s unfortunate that even after giving months of his time as part of the charter commission, he would work against it due to this provision that will ultimately serve the town well.

The charter has merit and should offer guidance for a breadth of issues that the town has already encountered and many it will likely deal with in the future. Residents should support the proposal, and work should continue on the document ”“ as it does in other communities ”“ to ensure elected officials are keeping taxpayers’ best interests in mind.

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Today’s editorial was written by City Editor Robyn Burnham representing the majority opinion of the Journal Tribune Editorial Board. Questions? Comments? Contact Managing Editor Kristen Schulze Muszynski by calling 282-1535, Ext. 322, or via email at kristenm@journaltribune.com.