To the Editor;
I encourage Rochester voters to vote yes on an appointed Town Clerk. If you vote yes, the Town Clerk will not simply be “appointed,” but will go through a hiring process which ensures that we get a qualified candidate to fill the non-decision making clerk’s role. The process would be similar to the hiring process used to appoint our Town Administrator. In our last election we had only one person officially running for the position. Under our current system only individuals who live in Rochester can run. This significantly reduces the number of qualified and experienced candidates. A yes vote would allow the town to hire from a much larger pool of qualified candidates thereby assuring that we get the best possible person to fill the role. The clerk’s position is not a partisan one, and the clerk does not have any decision-making power, so why do we elect them in a partisan way now? In our last town wide election, we experienced a grievous mistake by the inexperienced clerk which skewed the election and cast doubt on several outcomes. Mistakes certainly happen, however under our current system there is no yearly performance review or reporting structure. If a clerk fails to perform or break the law the only recourse is a costly recall election or wait for the term to end. The demands and complexity of the job are increasing yearly with new laws, reporting regulations, and technological requirements. Additionally, the position itself has no health care option, no paid vacation or sick time. The position would be a professional one for the employee with benefits. A yes vote would not terminate the current clerk’s tenure and now that she is experienced, she could reapply in 2026. The town deserves the best we can find; a yes vote would allow that to happen.
Michael Kovacevich
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