From the Town Clerk

Hello All ~ Oh my gosh, where did October go? I hope the November issue of the Reporter finds you all well. As we enter the month of November, this is a friendly reminder that quarterly Real Estate & Property Taxes were due Thursday, November 1st.

11-06-18 State Gubernatorial Election
The State Gubernatorial Election will be held on Tuesday, November 6, 2018. ALL THREE PRECINCTS WILL BE OPEN – Precinct I is the Town Office Building at 148 Peck Street, Precinct II is the Gladys L. Hurrell Senior Center at 55 Bay State Road and Precinct III is the South Fire Station at 102 Pleasant Street. The polls will be open at 7 a.m. and remain open until 8 p.m.

The final Voter Registration session, prior to the election, was Wednesday, October 17th at the Town Clerk’s Office from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Voters who will be out of town on Election Day (Tuesday, November 6, 2018) or who will be unable to get to the polls may contact the Town Clerk’s Office to obtain an absentee ballot; a written request to the Town Clerk with the voter’s original signature is required to obtain a ballot. Absentee Ballot Applications are also available at the Rehoboth Post Office, Blanding Library, and Senior Center. Absentee ballot request forms are also available online at:
https://www.sec.state.ma.us/ele/elepdf/absentee/English-Absentee-Ballot-Application.pdf
for an individual or family member.
http://www.sec.state.ma.us/ele/elepdf/2018-Short-Form-Absentee-Ballot-Application.pdf
Short Form

Absentee ballots are available at Town Hall should voters wish to complete the application and vote at the same time. The cut-off for applying for absentee ballots is 12 noon on Monday, November 5th. If you are not sure if you are registered to vote or what precinct you vote in, you may check your voter status on the Secretary of State’s website at:
http://www.sec.state.ma.us/VoterRegistrationSearch/MyVoterRegStatus.aspx
If your registration indicates your voter status as inactive, please contact the Clerk’s office. Should voters have questions regarding their eligibility, they should call the Town Clerk’s Office Monday through Thursday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and on Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at 508 252-6502, Extension 3109 or 3110.

Early Voting
As of today’s writing (10/30/18), over 575 voters (over 6% of voting population) came to Rehoboth Town Hall or the COA Senior Center (Saturday, October 27 only at COA) to cast their vote early for the November 6, 2018 Gubernatorial Election. In the Town of Rehoboth, Early Voting was done in person at Rehoboth Town Hall – 148 Peck Street – Town Clerk’s Office on the following dates: Monday-Friday, October 22-November 2 between the hours of 8:00 AM-4:00 PM (Mondays-Thursdays) and 8:00 AM-12:00 Noon (Fridays). For public’s convenience, the Rehoboth Town Clerk’s Office also decided to offer extended evening hours and weekend hours.
Extended Evening and Saturday Hours of Early Voting were:
Wednesday, October 24, 2018 from 8:00 AM – 7:00 PM – Town Hall-148 Peck Street
Tuesday, October 30, 2018 from 8:00 AM – 7:00 PM – Town Hall-148 Peck Street
Saturday, October 27, 2018 from 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM – COA (Senior Center) 55 Bay State Road

Registered voters also had the option to request an Early Voting ballot through the mail. Simply fill out an application and mail to the Town of Rehoboth – Town Clerk’s Office, 148 Peck Street, Rehoboth, MA 02769. For the second time in Massachusetts history, the first decision all voters made was . . . which day to vote. Early voting made the most fundamental right of our citizens more convenient than ever to exercise. We thank all of our registered voters who exercise their right and take advantage of the opportunity to vote when it is most convenient for them. The comments we received from the early voters were wonderful. They were appreciative that we were open and available for Early Voting. Thank you all for your kind words and for voting early! I would also like to thank my Election Workers who made all 11 sessions of Early Voting possible ~ thank you for your time and dedication!

New Way to Check-In to Vote for Early Voting and Elections ~ Poll Pads
We introduced the Poll Pad, an advanced way to check-in voters during the Early Voting sessions in October. The Poll Pad is an iPad-based electronic unit that will at some time in the future replace the paper voter books. During the Early Voting Period, it helped us process the voters throughout the entire two week period. It speeds up the check-in process for the registered voters and election workers. We currently have three units, one for each Precinct. The voter gives the election worker the first three letters of their last name and first three letters of their first name. The election worker confirms the voter’s address and then they are checked-in. The voter may also VOLUNTARILY choose to have their driver’s license scanned, which is an even quicker process of checking-in. As IDs are not required by law to vote in the State of Massachusetts, the license scan process is only done on a voluntary basis by the voter. We hope this new process will speed up the Check-In and Check-Out process. The end of the day tally process has been streamlined and the check-out process has been improved even more than check-in. The comments from the Voters and Election Workers have been very favorable. You can expect to see the Poll Pads at the upcoming Tuesday, November 6th Gubernatorial Election as well. By putting the Poll Pads into practice, we continue our quest to make the Clerk’s Office and Government Services more efficient and accessible to the public. Please come to the polls and check out the new electronics!!

10-29-18 Special Fall Town Meeting
The Rehoboth Board of Selectmen scheduled a Special Fall Town Meeting held on Monday, October 29, 2018 at the Dighton Rehoboth Regional High School at 7:00 p.m. Every household received the Town Meeting Warrant in their mailboxes on Friday, October 12th. The 10-29-2018 Fall Town Meeting came to order at 7:05 p.m. with a beginning quorum of 73 registered voters. For greater detail on each article, please refer to the Town Meeting warrant you received at home on 10-12-18. At the conclusion of Town Meeting there were a total of 145 voters present.

Appointments & Volunteers
I have been busy swearing in appointed committee members, over the past few months. I would personally like to take this opportunity to thank the many wonderful volunteers in town for your time and dedicated service. Without the generosity of our town volunteers we would be unable to provide the services we are so fortunate to have. Thank you all. If you have an appointment slip and have not been sworn in, please give us a call to schedule a convenient time/place to swear you in. Remember, if you are not sworn in, you cannot vote at committee meetings. Also, those of you who would like to share your time and talents with the town, please fill out a talent bank form and join the team. Talent Bank forms are available online @ www.town.rehoboth.ma.us in the “Forms & Documents” tab under the “Town Administrator” section or at town hall in the Selectmen’s office ~ thank you.

2018 Dog License Reminders
Unfortunately after two mailed reminders, several monthly reminders in the Rehoboth Reporter, and several reminder phone calls from our Animal Control Officer, Rob Johnson, we were required to mail non-criminal citations to those residents who have not paid their April 1, 2018 dog license fees. If you received a citation, please make sure your dogs have a valid rabies certificate and send or bring your licensing fees to town hall as soon as possible. Out of 2,211 registered dogs in Rehoboth, we currently have 30 license renewals outstanding. Please register your dogs either online, by mail, or in person to avoid any future late fees. Thank you!

Town Offices Closed
Just a reminder, Town Offices will be closed on Monday, November 12, 2018 to observe Veteran’s Day and Thursday, November 22nd for Thanksgiving Day. In addition to Thanksgiving Day, Town Offices will close at noon on Wednesday, November 21st and remain closed on Friday, November 23rd, the day after Thanksgiving.

Please Thank A Veteran
Please take a moment on Veteran’s Day (November 11) to think about and thank the Veterans in your life, along with all the other Veterans for their dedication, service, and sacrifice for our Country. I thank you all!

Finally, Lynn and I would like to wish you all a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and friends. Have a healthy and safe November. Please remember to vote on Tuesday, November 6th if you have not already voted early or absentee. I look forward to chatting with you again in December.

Sincerely,
Laura