Ridgefield residents weighed in on a number of proposed changes to the town's charter during the election last week.  Residents overwhelmingly supported separating the Ridgefield Inland Wetlands Board from the Planning and Zoning Commission.  Five other proposals were approved and three failed.  

Among those rejected were making the treasurer and tax collector appointed positions.  Voters also defeated a question would ave allowed the Annual Town Meeting to reduce budgets before they are sent to referendum only if the meeting is attended by at least 2-percent of registered town voters. 

Under one approved question, the finance board will now be tasked with creating a “master budget schedule” by which the school board and selectmen’s budgets are heard, commented on, and eventually approved by the voters.  Voters decided to allow selectmen and finance board to determine how to spend money left over when capital projects are completed under their approved budget amount.  Residents voted to prevent a candidate from running for more than one office in single election with overlapping terms. 

The charter’s “standards of conduct” section will be deleted after a new ethics code is proposed by the selectmen and adopted by a town meeting.  A series of “technical changes” were approved.  They include having the “Commission on the Disabled” renamed the “Commission on Accessibility.”