By Kerri Pepoy,Staff Writer

OTISFIELD – The Board of Selectmen is developing new policies to ensure that the town’s increasing amount of government business complies with state law regarding public access to government information, Chairman Mark Cyr said Wednesday.

Cyr said Otisfield has undergone “explosive” growth, particularly along lakefront areas. The growth has been coupled with an increasing amount of government business, he said.

“We have more committees functioning than we’ve ever had before,” he said. “We’re really trying to comply with the Right to Know Law.”

The new policies, which are in draft form and still subject to legal review, include a Personal Contact Information Policy, a Committee/Board Standards Policy, and a Committee/Board Ethics Policy.

The state’s Right to Know Law gives the public access to information about its government. The law recognizes that some private information is kept by governmental groups, and that public safety sometimes requires that information be kept confidential.

The Committee/Board Ethics policy prohibits board or committee business from being conducted outside the context of a public meeting of that board or committee. Conducting business outside of a public meeting is a violation of state law, Cyr said.

This policy raised questions among residents.

Gary Tougas, a member of the town’s Government Study Committee, questioned whether the board could use state law as justification for the policy. State law defines public proceedings as “the transactions of any functions affecting any or all citizens of the state by any board, commission, agency, or authority or any county, municipality, school district, or any regional or other political or administrative subdivisions.”

“In my mind, the key thing is affecting the citizens,'” Tougas said. The Government Study Committee only studies issues and makes recommendations, while the board votes on issues that affect residents.

Cyr said the policy would cover committees, but added that the policies are “a work in progress” and are still subject to a legal review.

The Personal Contact Information policy prohibits the release of home addresses, phone and fax numbers, and e-mail addresses; personal cell phone numbers; and personal pager numbers of most municipal officials including appointed board or committee members. The policy does not apply to elected officials.

The Committee/Board Standards policy sets attendance and public-behavior standards for board and committee members.

In other business, Cyr asked residents to attend the next regular board meeting Oct. 5 to discuss a proposal to switch to a July-through-June fiscal year from the current January-through-December year, noting that both Oxford County and SAD 17 operate on the former.