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Agenda

Item 1: Minutes of March 2, 2026 meeting.

Item 2: 3-17-26 Magrath-Smith, Purcell – Ordered, that the City Council adopt a Home Rule Petition petitioning for the right to locally prevent the sale and use of S-GARs despite state preemption.

Item 3: 3-17-26 Panitch, Devine: Ordered, that the Holyoke City Council petition the General Court to amend the residency requirement set forth in Section 45 of the Holyoke Charter as it relates to elected officials. The current provision requires that a candidate for elected office have been a resident of the city for the prior two years, and should be reviewed for both the desirability of the policy and its consistency with state law.

Item 4: 9-17-25 Vacon, Greaney – ORDER: add a rule that any city councilor named by a speaker during public speak has 2 minutes to respond at the end of public speak.
*Tabled 2-2-26, 3-2-26

Item 5: 2-3-26 Sullivan- Ordered, that the City Council amend its Rules to establish clearer and more stringent guidelines governing Public Comment, including, but not limited to, requiring that individuals participating remotely keep their cameras on while speaking during Public Comment.
*Tabled 3-2-26

Item 6: 2-3-26 Panitch, Thalheimer:-Ordered: that the Council Rules be examined and revised as necessary to clarify the Rule 9 provisions relating to legal form and committee procedure.
*Tabled 3-2-26

Item 7: 2-17-26 Panitch- Ordered that the Honorable Holyoke City Council petition the Great and General Court of Massachusetts to amend Section 15 of the Holyoke Charter to reflect the new appointing authorities to financial departments be set by ordinance.
*Tabled 3-2-26

Item 8: 3-3-26 Panitch: Ordered that Council Rule 8(L) be amended to conform to the Council’s practice with respect to approval of amendments to said Rules; and further ordered that the Council take such measures as are necessary to affirm that Rules amendments adopted in the past without strict compliance with Rule 8(L) as currently worded shall be deemed to have been validly adopted.

Item 9: 3-3-26 Panitch: ordered that sections 13 and 24 of the Holyoke Charter be amended as necessary to conform to any changes to Section 22, and to provide that except where otherwise specified by the Charter or by state law, every ordinance shall be considered as adopted by final action by vote of a simple majority of all members of the city council, voting in a recorded roll-call vote.

Item 10: 2-17-26 Panitch- Ordered that the Law Department and City Council review Section 22 of the Holyoke Charter to consider amendments to clarify its language, and to examine whether provisions therein related to the $200 threshold for applicability, and for voting procedure and thresholds, should be revised or eliminated.
*Tabled 3-2-26

LAID ON THE TABLE
(Items taken up at previous meeting(s) and laid on the table. Discussion has not been planned, but any item may be removed from the table upon motion of the committee.)

Item 11: 12-5-23 VACON — Ordered, That we amend our charter and ordinances to change from an elected Mayor to a City Manager/Chief Administrative Financial Officer, appointed by the City Council.
*Tabled 5-13-24, 6-10-24, 3-3-25, 10-14-25, 2-4-26

Item 12: 5-21-24 DEVINE – Ordered that the City Council consider a rule addition to to RULE 6C (DECORUM/SPEAKING), adding the following words as a second paragraph:
“No Councilor shall speak more than 4 minutes during debate. The President/and or the City Council Administrative Assistant shall keep track of the minutes. A (1) one minute reminder shall be given at the 3 minute mark during debate.”
*Amended to “3 minutes at a time,” referred back 2-4-25, tabled 3-3-25, 10-14-25, 2-4-26

Item 13: 5-6-25 Jourdain, Vacon – Rule 8 be amended by adding a New Rule 8.O as follows:
No sum appropriated for a specific purpose shall be expended for any other purpose, and no expenditure shall be made nor liabilities incurred by or in behalf of the city until an appropriation has been fully voted by the city council, sufficient to meet such expenditure or liability, together with all prior unpaid liabilities which are payable out of such appropriation, except in accordance with the recommendation of the mayor to the city council, approved by the yea and nay vote of two-thirds of the council: provided, however, that after the expiration of the financial year and until the passage of the annual appropriations liabilities payable out of a regular appropriation to be contained therein may be incurred to an amount not exceeding one third of the total of such appropriation for the preceding year. Every bill, pay roll or other voucher covering an expenditure of money shall be approved by the signatures on the back of such bill or voucher of the majority of the board or committee having control of or incurring such expenditure, and after such approval such bills, pay rolls or vouchers shall be turned over to the auditor. The financial year shall begin with the first day of July in each year. The provisions of this section shall apply throughout the entirety of the financial year, [Reference: City Charter Section 49, MG.L. c. 44 § 56A and MG.L. c. 44 § 338] *Tabled 12-9-25, 2-4-26

Item 14: 1-6-26 Panitch- ORDERED, that Council Rule 8D be struck in its entirety, that Rule 8F be amended to read, “In all cases the President shall have the privilege of discussing all matters before the Council and of voting thereon.,” and that Rule 8 be renumbered accordingly. The revised rule would serve the public’s interest in their elected Councilor being able to participate fully in the Council’s decisions, and is consistent with the practice of the Council’s committees and with the rules of other city boards and commissions.
*Tabled 1-21-26, 2-4-26

Item 15: 1-6-26 Magrath-Smith – Ordered, that a standing agenda item be added to the Council agenda to allow for tracking the progress of ordinances being changed in Municode. This will allow us to ensure that our ordinance changes are being accurately recorded.
*Tabled 1-21-26, 2-4-26

Item 16: 2-3-26 Thalheimer, Panitch, Anderson-Burgos- Ordered: that the City Solicitor advise the Council as to under what circumstances, if any, a person wishing to participate in public comment, or to speak at a public hearing, is obliged to give their name and address for the record, and what the legal basis for any such requirement would be.  The question arises because contrary to the Council’s general understanding, there appears to be no such requirement set forth in the Council’s current Rules, and there has been contention over the issue that should be resolved.
*Tabled 3-2-26