1 Number 4 May 1999 Message from the Secretary Table of Contents L ast month I was honored to be the keynote speaker at the 54 th annual Town Officer Educational Conferences sponsored by the UVM Extension Service. It is hard to describe the excitement I felt talking with local officials from around the state, hearing your stories, your concerns and receiving your advice and encouragement. I thank you for that. The people of Vermont should be proud of the many local officials who so generously share their time, skills and experience to help make our communities a better place. At the Town Officers' Conference we spoke a lot about local control.
Problems arise because the legislature enacts laws for all towns and cities.
But in Townshend or Corinth or Franklin, there are unique problems that don't fit into the statutory framework - and with no local authority to address them we can get awfully frustrated. Despite the challenge of lack of legal authority, Vermont communities have displayed an extraordinary ability to resolve their own problems. This is a daily reminder of the preemptive power of local control. Clearer laws, better laws can help, but while this is a nation and state of laws, experience is the life of the law, and how officers do their jobs is often as important as what they do. Educational programs like the Town Officers Educational Conferences are important in that they bring us together to learn about the laws that govern our actions.