An act relating to approving the merger of the Village of Lyndonville with the Town of Lyndon

Section 12(b): The effective date for ordinances adopted by citizen initiative was changed from 30 days after adoption to 60 days after adoption, giving the Town more time to prepare before a new ordinance takes effect.

Section 33 (Selectboard Meetings): The requirement that the Selectboard meet at least twice each month was removed from the unofficial version, giving the Selectboard more flexibility in scheduling meetings.

Section 32(c)-(d): Two provisions were removed - the exception referencing 17 V.S.A. section 2103(5) regarding quorum and voting, and the explicit statement that no vote of the Selectboard shall be taken in executive session.

Section 14 (Covered Bridges): An additional condition was added requiring that the covered bridge must have a weight limit formally set pursuant to 23 V.S.A. section 1397a before the Town can impose the increased civil penalty of up to $10,000 or repair costs for operator damage.

Section 61 (Fiscal Year): The definition was simplified from 'commence on the first day of January and end at 12:00 midnight on the last day of the following December' to simply 'commence on the first day of January.'

Section 42(b): Garbled text in the official version ('The ballot boxes polling places at any election Town elections') was corrected to 'The polling places at Town elections.'

A new procedural step was added to Section 12(a) requiring the Town attorney to examine any citizen-initiated ordinance before it is submitted to a special Town meeting. The attorney may, with Selectboard approval, correct unlawful or unconstitutional provisions and make technical corrections for accuracy and clarity, as long as the meaning is not changed.

Section 33(f), which allowed any Selectboard member to add items to the written agenda at the start of a meeting with majority approval, was removed entirely from the enacted version.

The effective date for ordinances adopted by citizen initiative was doubled from 30 days to 60 days following adoption (Section 12(b)).

The covered bridge penalty provision (Section 14) was narrowed in two ways: the statutory override was limited to 23 V.S.A. section 1434(c) instead of all of section 1434, and a new condition was added requiring that the covered bridge must have a weight limit set pursuant to 23 V.S.A. section 1397a before the Town can impose the penalty.

The sentence prohibiting the Selectboard from taking any vote in executive session was removed from Section 33(d). The House version stated 'No vote of the Selectboard on any matter shall be taken in executive session.'

The quorum provision in Section 33(c) had an exception referencing 17 V.S.A. section 2103(5) that was removed in the enacted version, making the majority-vote rule unconditional.

Section 42(b) changed 'ballot boxes' to 'polling places' and corrected a drafting error ('any election Town elections' became 'Town elections').

Section 27(c)(3) regarding the appraiser was cleaned up from a garbled House version that contained leftover text, clarifying that the Selectboard appoints the appraiser and that the appraiser is an employee of the Town.

A new section 14 (Penalties for Violation of an Ordinance) was added, allowing fines up to $10,000 per violation, classifying violations as misdemeanors or rule violations under State law, and authorizing the Town to seek injunctions in addition to criminal prosecution.

The covered bridges penalty provision was expanded. A broader penalty section was added referencing 23 V.S.A. section 1434 (without the subsection (c) limitation and without requiring a posted weight limit), while the original more specific increased-penalty provision for damage resulting from exceeding a set limit was retained.

The effective date for ordinances adopted by citizen initiative was shortened from 60 days after adoption to 30 days after adoption.

A new provision was added stating that no vote of the Selectboard on any matter shall be taken in executive session, reinforcing open meeting requirements.

A new subsection (f) to section 33 allows any Selectboard member to add items to the written agenda upon commencement of a meeting, provided a majority of the entire Selectboard votes to add them.

The authority to appoint an appraiser to assist the Board of Listers was modified to require approval of the Selectboard, with the language suggesting shared or clarified authority between the Board of Listers and the Selectboard.

The quorum provision in section 33(c) now includes an exception referencing 17 V.S.A. section 2103(5), which governs certain voting procedures for municipal officers.

The nine-hour minimum ballot box opening requirement was broadened from applying to Town elections specifically to any election, expanding its applicability.

Section 14 was replaced. The original section allowed fines up to $10,000 for ordinance violations, classified violations as misdemeanors or rule violations, and allowed the Town to seek injunctions. It was replaced with a new section allowing the Town to adopt an ordinance imposing a civil penalty of up to $10,000 or the cost of repairs for operator damage to covered bridges that have posted weight limits.

Section 12(b): The effective date for ordinances adopted by citizen initiative was changed from 30 days after adoption to 60 days after adoption, doubling the waiting period before such ordinances take effect.

Section 63 (Public Meeting on Proposed Budget) was marked as [RESERVED], eliminating the requirement that the Selectboard hold a public budget review meeting at least 40 days before the annual Town meeting and publish notice in a local newspaper at least 7 days prior.

Section 27(c)(3): Appraiser appointment authority was shifted. Originally the Board of Listers could appoint an appraiser with Selectboard approval; now the Selectboard directly appoints the appraiser to assist the Board of Listers.

Section 33(c): Removed the exception 'except as provided in 17 V.S.A. section 2103(5)' from the provision stating that a majority of Selectboard members present constitutes the act of the Selectboard.

Section 61 (Fiscal Year): Removed the language specifying the fiscal year ends at 12:00 midnight on the last day of December, leaving only the start date of January 1.

Section 42(b): Changed 'any election' to 'Town elections' when specifying that ballot boxes must be open for a minimum of nine consecutive hours, narrowing the scope slightly.