Burlington charter to require annual Select Board evaluation of town administrator

BURLINGTON — June 9, 2026 — Burlington's Government Review Committee voted 11-0 to add a mandatory annual performance evaluation of the town administrator to the town's draft charter. The new Section 4.6 requires the Select Board to evaluate the administrator each year, adopt written criteria for the evaluation, and provide a copy to the administrator — a requirement that does not currently exist in any formal town document. The committee also voted 11-0 to leave the constable position as an elected office, after town administrative staff outlined governing statutes and benchmark data showing a regional mix of elected and appointed constables in surrounding communities. In a separate extended discussion, committee members debated whether proposed conflict-of-interest charter language should extend to town meeting members, who currently operate under a bylaw requiring disclosure but treating abstention as voluntary; no vote was taken and town counsel was directed to draft revised language. The committee also received a detailed budget process briefing from the assistant town administrator, who described Burlington as simultaneously working in three fiscal years and presenting a five-year budget guideline framework for the first time this year, targeting a reduction in annual budget increases from 4.5 percent in FY26 to 3.75 percent beginning in FY29.