Town Meeting Information

Upcoming Meetings

Annual Town Meeting - May 7, 2024 - 7 pm.

• Deadline to Register to Vote: April 26, 2024
• Last Day to Submit Citizens Petitions: March 19, 2024 at 4:00 pm

Click here to view previous Town Meeting Results.

Voter Registration

The Town Clerk's office will be open late (8:30 am to 8 pm) 20 days before an Annual Town Meeting and 10 days before a Special Town Meeting to register voters.

Town Meeting Information

The Town of Dennis has an Open Town Meeting which means that all registered voters may speak and vote at the meeting. The Annual Town Meeting convenes on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in May. Special Town Meetings are anytime when necessary to conduct Town business.

The responsibilities of the Town Meeting are to:

• Appropriate funds for operating and capital budgets for the upcoming fiscal year (July 1 to June 30)
• Approve all General and Zoning By-Laws (contained in the Code of Dennis); and
• Accept certain "local option" statutes of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Process & Procedures

The Town Clerk reports on the actions of each Town Meeting session and is the keeper of the official minutes.

All matters of Town Meeting business are included in the Warrant. Each item of business is called a Warrant article. The Select Board determines the content and order of articles in the Warrant and sets the deadline for closing the warrant.

The Town Moderator, who is elected by the voters for a three-year term, presides over the business and conduct of the Town Meeting. Operating procedures and rules are dictated by statute, by-laws, or tradition; in their absence Roberts' Rules of Parliamentary Practice governs. Citizens may address the Town Meeting, and when recognized by the moderator, may make motions and may participate in votes taken.

To hold an Annual Town Meeting there needs to be a quorum of 150 legally registered voters. For Special Town Meetings, a quorum of 75 legally registered voters needs to be present for the meeting to take place.