a communication from Vice Mayor Devereux , transmitting a memorandum regarding Policy Order #72 dated March 19, 2018 that the City Manager be and herby is requested to confer with the Election Commission regarding the possibility of instituting early voting in the 2019 municipal election and what actions would be required by the City Council to do so

CAMBRIDGE CITY COUNCIL Jan Devereux Vice Mayor June 21, 2018 Donna, Please include the attached document on the June 25, 2018 Agenda as a Communication and Report from Other City Officers. Thank you, Im Devereux Jan Devereux Vice Mayor CITY HALL, CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS 02139 [phone removed] FAX [phone removed] TTY/TDD: [phone removed] EMAIL: jdevereux@cambridgema.gov

CAMBRIDGE CITY COUNCIL Jan Devereux Vice Mayor June 21, 2018 Dear Colleagues: I am sharing a communication that the Government Operations/Rules and Claims Committee received this week, in regards Policy Order 2018 #72 dated March 19, 2018. This Order asked "that the City Manager be and hereby is requested to confer with the Election Commission regarding the possibility of instituting early voting in the 2019 municipal election and what actions would be required by the City Council to do so... land] that the City Manager be and hereby is requested to report back on this matter to the Government Operations, Rules & Claims Committee ..." I would like to share this response publicly with my colleagues and make clear my intent to schedule a Committee Hearing this summer to further discuss this issue. I look forward to continuing this discussion. Thank you, Ion Devereux Jan Devereux Vice Mayor CITY HALL, CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS 02139 [phone removed] FAX [phone removed] TTY/TDD: [phone removed] EMAIL: jdevereux@cambridgema.gov

Nancy E Glowa Assistant Ciry Solicitors Cily Solicitor Paul S. Kawai amuel A. rylessor arthur d. Goldberg eplin K. U. Allwate Deputy Cir Solicitor Sean Mi McKendry Megian B. Bayer Val Buland Brian 4. Schwartz First Assistant Ciry Solicitor Public Records Access Officer Jennifer Simpson CITY OF CAMBRIDGE Office of the City Solicitor 795 Massachusetts Avenue Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 June 25, 2018 Louis A. DePasquale City Manager City Halt Cambridge, MA 02139 Re: Policy Order Resolution O-3 of 3/19/18 Re: the possibility of instituting early voting in the 2019 municipal election and what actions would be required by the City Council to do so, with report back in June to the Government Operations, kules & Claims Cormittee, Dear Mr. DePasquale: This is in response to the above-referenced City Council Policy Order regarding the possibility of instituting early voting in the 2019 City election. I have conferred with the Executive Director of the Election Commission about this response. In my opinion, based on the relevant statutory language, early voting for a stand-alone City election is not allowed by law. If the City Council wants to seek authority to institute early voting for stand-alone City elections, special legislation from the State Legislature would be required to: create an exception for Cambridge from the existing law. G.L.c.54, §25B, effective November 2, 2015, allowed early voting in elections. The relevant statutory language, at $25B (a), provides: The election officers and registrars of every city or town shall allow any qualified voter, as defined in section 1 of chapter 51, to cast a ballot for any biennial state election during the early voting period as set forth in this section including, but not limited to, any city or town election held at the same time. This language allows early voting only for a city election held at the same time as a biennial state election. So it is only city elections that are not held at the same time as a biennial state election that would need special legislation for early voting to be allowed. G.L.c.54, §25B carves out an exception from other general voting requirements to allow for early voting, so in my opinion the carve-out parameters may not be expanded to Telephone [phone removed] Facsimile (617) 349-4/34 TTY/TTD (617) 349:4242

2 include additional local elections without further statutory authorization, which may be obtained by way of special act. Therefore, for these reasons, in my opinion, if the City Council wants to seek authority to institute early voting for stand-alone City elections, special legislation from the State Legislature would be required to create an exception for Cambridge from G.L.c.54; §25B. Very truly yours, Nancy E. Glowa