The spouse of a Bangor councilor will be allowed to serve on the School Committee after the city previously would not clarify whether she could be sworn in under a nepotism provision in its charter.
Jamie Beck, wife of City Councilor Michael Beck, is one of three candidates who qualified to run for three open seats on the School Committee.
Article four of Bangor’s charter states, “No immediate family member of a sitting City Councilor shall serve on any board, committee or commission of the City of Bangor during the City Councilor’s term.”
But new evidence indicates that the provision was intended to bar family members from serving on council-appointed boards, which does not include the elected School Committee. The newfound clarity means that all three open School Committee seats can be filled, avoiding the headache of selecting a replacement after the petition period for committee candidates had already closed.
“In response to questions, the city looked into this issue and found evidence that shows the intent behind a 2010 Charter amendment via a sample ballot from that election,” city spokesperson David Warren said.
The ballot from 2010, the year the rule was approved by voters, suggests that it was meant to apply to appointed board members and to bodies created by ordinance or by city council, he added.
The summary for the ballot question states, “This amendment will prohibit the immediate family member of a sitting City Councilor from being appointed to or serving on any board, commission, or committee of the City, established by ordinance or by the City Council,” according to a screenshot Beck shared with the Bangor Daily News.
The School Committee was established by the city’s charter, not by ordinance or by the council. Members are elected by the public, unlike most other committees that have members appointed by the council.
Given the new information, the position of the city’s legal department is that the rule would not prevent Beck, or any other family member of a councilor, from serving on the School Committee, according to Warren.
“I feel very relieved and look forward to serving,” Beck told the BDN.
The decision aligns with the precedent set by Ben Sprague, who recently served on the School Committee for two years while his father, Jonathan Sprague, was a city councilor.