Fairhaven's draft Nov. 17 warrant includes a citizens petition to ban license plate readers

Updated Oct. 18 with more detail.

FAIRHAVEN Fairhaven Town Meeting may be asked Nov. 17 to ban automated license plate readers, under a citizens petition in the draft Special Town Meeting warrant, according to the Select Board's Oct. 13 meeting packet. The draft has nine articles. The board's agenda that night listed a vote to close the warrant; the outcome was not posted on the town website as of Oct. 18, and the final warrant must be posted by Nov. 3.

The license plate reader petition

Article 9 would add a general bylaw barring town departments, including the police, from buying, leasing or running the systems or using outside camera networks. No current contract could be renewed or extended, "including, but not limited to, Flock Safety," the draft says. Existing agreements would run out their terms, and cameras on town poles and property would come down within 30 days after a contract ends. Vendors would be told to delete stored data, except where public records law or a court order requires it, and the bylaw would bar automatic sharing of the data with out-of-state police, federal civil enforcement agencies or private aggregators.

The bylaw keeps body cameras, dashboard cameras and ordinary security cameras, and allows targeted records under a court search warrant or during an emergency such as an Amber Alert. The petition's summary says it "preserves all standard police technology." The motion is to be supplied by the petitioner, the draft says.

The money articles

Article 1 would spend $168,628.08 in insurance money to repair 2026 blizzard flood damage at an elementary school, at the School Department's request. Article 4 would move $253,156 left from West Island Treatment Plant work approved in October 2020 and $287,167 left from the Sunset Beach Sewer Extension approved in June 2022, a total of $540,323, into the sewer nitrogen plant account Town Meeting created in June 2022.

Article 5 would shift $30,348 from unspent articles to the accounting budget. The board's agenda notes say the money would fund the full-time assistant town accountant for the rest of fiscal 2027 and about a month of overlap for a new town accountant, because Town Accountant Anne Carreiro plans to retire in July 2027. The agenda notes name Article 7A of the May 6, 2023, Town Meeting as the source, while the draft article lists a 2022 conservation grant-matching account; the final warrant should settle which.

Article 2 would fund a two-year dispatch union agreement running through June 30, 2028. The agenda notes say its cost is already in the police budget, so no new money is requested.

The other articles

Article 3 would let the Board of Public Works lease space on the Sconticut Neck Road water tower for communications equipment for up to 25 years. Article 6 would make the Conservation Commission the sole holder of a conservation restriction on 117 acres on Weeden Road, taking over the Buzzards Bay Coalition's interest. Article 7 would re-adopt a trust fund for retiree health and life benefits; the draft says the town voted it in 2011 but never fully executed the trust agreement. Article 8 would change bylaws to match the town charter.

How to weigh in

Select Board and Finance Committee recommendations are blank in the draft. The board's Oct. 13 agenda set its next regular meeting for Monday, Oct. 26, at 6:30 p.m. The Oct. 13 meeting was held at Town Hall, 40 Center St., with Zoom access and replays on Channel 97 and FairhavenTV.com, its agenda says. The warrant directs questions to the Select Board and Town Administrator's office; the town's website lists the Town Hall number as (508) 979-4023. Elected Town Meeting members vote at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 17, in the Walter Silveira Auditorium at Hastings Middle School, 30 School St.

Label: Reported by us, from the town's posted records.