Greetings!

 

The day after the earthquake in Haiti, the Broad Meadows Community began raising money to support the recovery efforts. Through water sales, a hat day, raffles, canning and a donation jar at the school, $3000 was raised in 30 days in support of Partners in Health and the St. Boniface Haiti Foundation. Visit the organization's websites to learn more and/or make a contribution.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Ordinance Committee of the Quincy City Council is holding a public hearing on Tuesday, February 16th at 6:15pm in the Council Chambers regarding Council President Kevin Coughlin's Home Rule Petition #2010-010 proposal to ban texting while driving in the City of Quincy.  The Ordinance Committee meeting will follow the public hearing.

 

Council Order 2010-010

Ordered: That a petition to the General Court, accompanied by a bill for a special law relating to the City of Quincy be filed with an attested copy of this order be, send hereby is, approved under Clause 1 of Section 8 of Article II, as amended, of the Articles of Amendment to the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, to the end that legislation be adopted precisely as follow, except for clerical or editorial changes of form only:

 

PETITION FOR A SPECIAL LAW RE:

BANNING TEXTING WHILE DRIVING IN THE CITY OF QUINCY

 

Section 1.

Notwithstanding Section 13 of Chapter 90 of the General Laws, or any other general or special law to the contrary, a person operating a moving motor vehicle in the City of Quincy, by means of a mobile telephone or an electronic wireless communications device, other than a voice activated global positioning or navigation system that is permanently affixed to the vehicle, sends, reads, or writes a text message, shall be guilty of a civil automobile law violation as defined in M.G.L. e. 90c, s. 1. As used in this act, a mobile telephone means an electronic wireless device that has an internal feature or function for wireless communications that shall include, but isn't limited to talking or listening to another person on the telephone, text messaging or sending an electronic text message to another mobile wireless telephone or other electronic communication devices.

 

Section 2.

Violations of Section 1 of this act shall be punished by a fine of one-hundred ($100) dollars for the first offense, two-hundred ($200) dollars for a second offense and three-hundred ($300) dollars for subsequent offenses committed during any twelve-month period.  The fines imposed pursuant to this act shall be divided as follows: seventy-five (75%) percent of the fines shall be paid over to the Treasury of the City of Quincy and twenty-five (25%) percent of the fines shall be paid over to the Treasurer of the Commonwealth to be deposited into the Highway Fund.

 

Section 3.

Any law enforcement officer with jurisdiction in the City of Quincy is authorized to enforce the provisions of this act. Said law enforcement officer may stop the motor vehicle and issue a citation to the operator, but only if the officer observes the violation, as defined in Section 1, or has reasonable grounds to believe that a violation of Section 1 has been committed, is being committed or is about to be committed.  Notwithstanding the provisions of this act, all other administrative enforcement and appeal procedures that apply to Chapter 90, Section 13 of the General Laws shall apply to this act.

 

Section 4.

The provisions of this act shall take effect upon its passage.

 

6:15pm: Public Hearing of Ordinance Committee Coughlin Home Rule Petition #2010-010 proposal to ban texting while driving in City of Quincy.

 

6:30pm: Ordinance Committee Meeting #2010-010 HRP to Ban Texting

 

 

 

       1) Presentation by Chuck Phelan - I.T. Update

       2) Appropriation of $3,500 to City Clerk - Rentals & Leases - to cover cost of custodians for the January 19, 2010 election - to be transferred from available funds in the Elections Department.

 

Meetings televised on QATV Channel 10 for Comcast subscribers.