The Vermont Statutes Online
The Statutes below include the actions of the 2025 session of the General Assembly.
NOTE: The Vermont Statutes Online is an unofficial copy of the Vermont Statutes Annotated that is provided as a convenience.
Subchapter
002
:
EXPLORATION, FORMATION, AND ORGANIZATION
(Cite as: 16 V.S.A. § 714)
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§ 714. Initial members of union school district board; tallying of at-large votes; oath of
office and assumption of duties
(a) Tallying of at-large votes for initial members of board. If the voters have elected some or all of the initial members of the union school
district board under either model involving at-large voting as set forth in subdivision
711(d)(2) (proposed unified union school district; modified at-large), (d)(3) (proposed
unified union school district; at-large), (e)(2) (proposed union elementary or union
high school district; modified at-large), or (e)(3) (proposed union elementary or
union high school district; at-large) of this chapter, then the total votes cast for
each of the at-large candidates shall be calculated as follows:
(1) Within seven days after the vote, the clerk of each school district voting on the
proposal to form a union school district shall transmit electronically to the Secretary
of Education the total number of votes cast in that school district for each at-large
candidate.
(2) The Secretary shall calculate the total votes cast for each candidate and transmit
those calculations to the clerks for verification. Ballots cast by the voters of any
“advisable” district that does not approve the proposal to form a new union school
district shall not be included in the calculation.
(3) When each clerk has verified the calculations, the Secretary shall prepare and execute
a certification of the votes cast for each candidate.
(b) Notification. If the voters approve formation of a new union school district, then within 30–45
days after the vote or 15 days after a vote to reconsider the original vote to form
the district, whichever is later, the notification of the election of initial board
members shall be sent to the Secretary of State as follows:
(1) The clerk of each forming district shall transmit the names of board members elected
in a manner that is proportional to town population as set forth in subdivision 711(d)(1)
(proposed unified union district; proportional to town population) or (e)(1) (proposed
union elementary or union high school district; proportional to town population) of
this chapter.
(2) The Secretary of Education shall transmit the names of board members elected under
either model involving at-large voting.
(c) Oath of office; assumption of duties; election of chair and clerk. The superintendent of the supervisory union serving the new union school district
shall cause the initial board members to be sworn in. Although the swearing-in may
occur prior to the organizational meeting required by section 715 of this chapter,
it shall not occur before the Secretary of State files the certified copy of the recorded
certification with each clerk pursuant to subsection 713(e) of this chapter. The initial
board members shall assume office upon being sworn in and shall meet to elect one
of their number to serve as the board chair and one other of its number to serve as
the board clerk, and to transact any other business within its jurisdiction; provided,
however, such meeting shall not occur prior to the organizational meeting required
by section 715 of this chapter. (Added 2021, No. 176 (Adj. Sess.), § 3, eff. June 7, 2022.)