In the last 50 years, Westbrook has elected only two city clerks: Bill Clarke, for whom William Clarke Drive is named, served from 1956 to 1993; and Barbara Hawkes, who has held the post since 1994.
But now, an announcement by Hawkes that she will not run for re-election in November has sparked a debate over whether the city clerk’s position should be elected or appointed.
As an elected official, the city clerk is accountable only to the voters every two years. As an employee, the clerk would be accountable to the city at all times.
Also influencing the debate is whether steps should be taken to make the position a professional one, either through requirements as an elected official or as a city employee. As it stands now, anyone, regardless of qualifications, can be elected to the position.
Ruthie Noble, the deputy city clerk for Westbrook, has said she would prefer that the position be made an appointed one because it is a conflict of interest and perhaps too difficult for the person administering an election to be running in the election.
“It think it’s time we take the politics out of the city clerk’s office,” she said.
The city council is holding a public hearing on the matter at its April 2 meeting.
According to the Maine Municipal Association, Maine has 195 elected city or town clerks and 248 that are appointed. Mike Starn, spokesman for the association, said the trend is moving toward appointed clerks in larger communities. As communities move away from a mayoral form of government toward a city administrator form of government, the other elected positions, such as the clerk, tend to follow suit.
Noble, a certified municipal clerk, said she thinks the position should be made a professional one so that the clerk is knowledgeable in election laws to properly train election volunteers and to foresee any potential problems that might prevent an election from running smoothly.
Also, Noble said, the position has evolved through the years beyond just issuing paper marriage licenses. For one thing, all records are kept on the computer and online.
“Anyone can issue a marriage license,” she said.
Beyond keeping vital statistics of Westbrook residents and performing such duties as issuing marriage licenses, business licenses, hunting and fishings licenses and the like, clerks are expected to administer the election process. That work requires that the clerk be up to date on election laws, properly train vote counters and work closely with the Maine Secretary of State’s office.
City Councilor Ed Symbol agrees with Noble that the position should be a professional one.
“It’s evolved from a different position 10 or 15 years ago,” he said. “I don’t think it’s a position where you can just step in off the street and do anymore.”
Starn said the position still entails many of the same duties it did 20 or 30 years ago, but changes in technology and election laws have made it more complicated. Much of the work is now done online through the state’s Web site, while election laws are continually changing and becoming more complex. Starn said clerks now undergo constant training to keep up with technology and law changes.
Accountability is a question for some in the city, including the city’s attorney, Bill Dale, who has said that the clerk’s position should be accountable to the administration, not just the voters. At a March 5 Westbrook City Council meeting, Dale said that, as an elected official, the clerk could conceivably come in at 10 a.m. and leave at 2 p.m., and the city could do nothing about it.
The accountability to the voters, however, is exactly what City Councilor John O’Hara likes about having the clerk an elected official. According to O’Hara, if the clerk isn’t doing the job well, the voters can elect a new one, while if the position is appointed, the city would need just cause to remove the person.
O’Hara said he sees both sides of the argument, though, and thinks that the system has worked well for the city over the years. He said he’s waiting to hear some of the upcoming debate before he makes a final decision on it himself.
Mayor Bruce Chuluda said he would prefer to keep it elected to ensure that a Westbrook resident retains the position. “I think it’s important in the city to have a Westbrook resident in city hall,” he said.
When the debate begins, Chuluda said, he’d be open to possibly changing things a little to make sure the city clerk’s duties are performed well. One possible solution, he said, would be to make the position similar to the mayor’s, whereby the clerk would perform much of the ceremonial work, such as facilitating city council meetings, while the deputy clerk’s position would be elevated to handle more of the day-to-day work.
For anyone wishing to join the debate on whether the Westbrook city clerk’s postition should be elected – as it is – or appointed, the city council will hold a public hearing on the matter at its meeting Monday, April 2, at 7 p.m., in room 114 of Westbrook High School.
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