DEERFIELD — The Selectboard clarified the ad hoc Human Rights Committee’s goals Wednesday evening and picked up a conversation from summer 2021 on adopting a policy for appointing town employees to regulatory boards.

With the eight-person committee expected to report to the Selectboard in the near future on a permanent Human Rights Committee’s function and role, Deborah Yaffe, the ad hoc committee’s chair, asked to clarify their end goal.

Selectboard member Tim Hilchey said the ad hoc committee’s mission is to “identify what we don’t understand about creating a committee like this.” The ad hoc committee is tasked with considering how a permanent Human Rights Committee would function when a complaint is submitted, how it would facilitate solutions and how its relationship with town government would work.

“Obviously, one of the goals is to have a mechanism, a group or place for people to bring potential complaints or potential violations of human rights about diversity, equity and inclusion in the community, and create discussion and awareness,” Hilchey explained, while apologizing for being “very vague.”

Fellow Selectboard member Carolyn Shores Ness added she is hopeful a permanent Human Rights Committee can be a proactive board, rather than a reactive one, which is how the ad hoc committee came together. The Selectboard convened the ad hoc committee last fall in response to a string of reported incidents over the last few years, including the drawing of swastikas around town.

“It’s just to be more aware, more sensitive and, as a board, be more thoughtful,” she said. “How do things work now and how do we improve that process? I’m looking for improvement.”

Small changes, Shores Ness highlighted, could be as simple as ensuring town meetings aren’t held on religious holidays like Yom Kippur or thinking about people’s physical ability when it comes to standing in line at Town Hall.

While the discussion was brief, Yaffe said it provided some guidance to bring back to the ad hoc Human Rights Committee, which met Thursday evening.

“I think members wanted clarification of that function, but also we’re looking in broader terms,” Yaffe said, adding that one of their goals is to reach out to town departments and businesses to try to foster “education and dialogue.”

With additional direction, Yaffe said the ad hoc committee will get back to work, although members may need more than a month, which was their originally proposed timeline for reporting their findings. The Selectboard advised her and her fellow members to take their time and come up with a strong plan.

“If we could meet for six weeks, then we’ll come back to you in mid-March,” Yaffe said. “We’ll keep on plugging away and we’ll get back in touch.”

Regulatory boards

Later in Wednesday’s meeting, the Selectboard picked up a discussion it began in 2021 about a policy barring town employees from being appointed to regulatory boards. In June of that year, several residents expressed concerns about power balances with having a town employee, such as a police officer, on a regulatory board like the Zoning Board of Appeals. A similar conversation was brought up in January when a resident raised concerns about Deerfield Police Sgt. Jennifer Bartak serving on the ad hoc committee.

The Selectboard had no issue with Bartak serving on the ad hoc committee because it is a temporary committee and due to her experience as the department’s civil rights officer, as well as her time as the University of Massachusetts Amherst Police Department’s Stonewall Center liaison.

Hilchey brought up the topic Wednesday to pick up the conversation because an appointment policy “protects” the town and its various departments from potential issues on regulatory boards.

“It doesn’t mean these departments can’t have a role or can’t run for office because that’s covered in state law. … If somebody has the bug to serve, run for an office, if the voters want you to do it, great,” Hilchey said. “I think it protects these departments from having their voluntary duties spill over into their professional duties.”

Shores Ness said having a policy for regulatory boards is “clear-cut” to her. Selectboard Chair Trevor McDaniel said it was tough to have a discussion about a policy while under a time constraint for appointments in summer 2021, but he is open to talking about it now.

“We should really have a discussion when we don’t have appointments hanging over us,” he said.

Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com or 413-930-4081.

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