MassVoter.com← GosnoldMunicipal votes · 2026–2027 Board
Gosnold Selectboard
How the Gosnold Selectboard voted, from the Selectboard’s official minutes. 3 Selectboard members elected townwide. The board reorganized after the May 2026 town meeting; Win Sanford continues as Chair. Minutes loaded through July 20, 2026. Covers 5 meetings so far, May 22 to July 20, 2026.
A monthly email on what it voted on, starting in November.
What does the Selectboard do? It is the town’s executive board. It prepares the Town Meeting warrant (the list of articles voters decide), appoints members of many town boards, hires the town’s top staff, signs warrants to pay town bills, and grants licenses and permits.
Town Meeting, not the Selectboard, votes the town budget and town bylaws.
Sources: Massachusetts Select Board Handbook (MMA) · Mass. Division of Local Services: the town budgetVote Transparency Score
Gosnold Selectboard: 3 out of 10 · Hard to see
How easy Gosnold makes it to see, online, how each member votes. It scores the town’s records, not any official. Checked October 4, 2026.
- Minutes postedMinutes are posted for most, but not all, of the past year’s meetings.Part points: 1/2
- Each vote namedVotes are recorded as “So moved. Unanimous vote.”, often without saying who made the motion; no split votes are recorded.Part points: 1/3
- Posted quicklyMinutes usually go up within a few months of the meeting.Part points: 1/2
- Past years onlineOnly about two years of Selectboard minutes are online.No points: 0/1
- Readable textMost recent minutes are scanned images, so you can’t search or copy the text.No points: 0/1
- Member photosThe town website lists the Selectboard by name, with no photos.No points: 0/1
How the town can raise its score
- Minutes posted (+1): Post approved minutes for every meeting on the town website. Don’t require a sign-in to view them.
- Each vote named (+2): On any vote that isn’t unanimous, write how each member voted. For example: “Motion passed 3–2. Yes: Smith, Jones, Lee. No: Brown, Silva.” A roll call on split votes is the simplest way to do this.
- Posted quickly (+1): Post minutes within 30 days. If approval takes longer, post a draft marked “Draft – not yet approved” and replace it later.
- Past years online (+1): Keep at least five years of minutes online. When the website changes, move the old files instead of deleting them.
- Readable text (+1): Save minutes straight from Word or Google Docs as a PDF instead of printing and scanning them. If a scan is needed, turn on the scanner’s “searchable PDF” or text-recognition setting.
- Member photos (+1): Show a photo of each member on the board’s web page, with their name, the date their term ends and how to contact them. A group photo of the members, with everyone named in the caption or on the same page, earns half a point.
How we score · Something wrong, or has the town made a change? Email info@massvoter.com and we’ll re-check.
A monthly email on its votes, starting in November. We'll also tell you if this score changes.
Board years
Coming up
No upcoming meeting is posted yet. Check the official calendar →
Under the state Open Meeting Law, boards post notice at least 48 hours ahead, not counting weekends and legal holidays.
What Town Meeting decided
In Gosnold, Town Meeting — not the Selectboard — votes the town budget, bylaws and zoning. Here is what it did with each article, in the Town Clerk’s own words. Any registered voter can take part, and most votes are by voice or show of hands, so there is no list of who voted which way.
Special Town Meeting · February 13, 2026 2 votes: 2 passed
- Art. 2 Appropriate $34,656.49 from General Stabilization for a new Solid Waste Department truck Passed “Approved unanimously.”
- Art. 3 Appropriate $55,800 from Harbor Special Projects Stabilization to relocate Cuttyhunk Harbor moorings Passed “Approved unanimously.”
Source: Town Clerk's record in the 2025 Gosnold Annual Town Report (page numbers as printed).
Annual Town Meeting · May 19, 2025 16 votes: 15 passed, 1 passed as amended
- Art. 2 Hear and accept the reports of the Town Officers Passed “Article 2 approved unanimously.”
- Art. 4 Authorize the Treasurer to borrow in anticipation of revenue for FY2026 Passed “were approved unanimously.”
- Art. 5 Authorize the Treasurer to enter compensating balance agreements for FY2026 Passed “were approved unanimously.”
- Art. 6 Appropriate money for town charges and expenses for FY2026 (operating budget) Passed “were approved unanimously.”
- Art. 7 Appropriate money for Chapter 90 road work in anticipation of state reimbursement Passed “were approved unanimously.”
- Art. 8 Appropriate money for Harbor Management Committee expenses Passed “were approved unanimously.”
- Art. 9 Appropriate money for the Water Enterprise Fund Passed “were approved unanimously.”
- Art. 10 Appropriate money for state pest and disease control indemnity Passed “were approved unanimously.”
- Art. 11 Appropriate and transfer money into the Stabilization Fund Passed “were approved unanimously.”
- Art. 12 Transfer $125,000 from General Fund Stabilization for solid waste improvements at the transfer station Passed “Article 12 approved unanimously.”
- Art. 13 Accept the Seasonal Community Designation under G.L. c. 23B, s. 32(b) Passed “After discussion Article 13 approved”
- Art. 14 Amend the Noise Bylaw (10 PM to 6:30 AM limits; $50 and $150 fines) Passed “After discussion Article 14 approved”
- Art. 15 Transfer $6,567 from General Fund Stabilization to the Water Reserve Fund for the USDA Rural Development payment Passed “Article 15 approved unanimously.”
- Art. 16 Use $207,224 of certified free cash for Electric Light deficits (FY24 and FY25) and $11,000 for accounting software Passed “After discussion Article 16 approved”
- Art. 17 Raise and appropriate $4,616.18 for Gosnold's share of Dukes County regional services (FY25 and FY26) Passed “Article 17 passed unanimously.”
- Art. 18 Pay prior-year (FY2024) bills, amended from $2,000 to $823.26 Passed as amended “amendment passed unanimously as did the amended Article 18.”
Source: Town Clerk's record in the 2025 Gosnold Annual Town Report (page numbers as printed).
Not here yet: the 2024 Annual Town Meeting, any 2024 Special Town Meetings, the May 2026 Annual Town Meeting and any other 2025–2026 Special Town Meetings (Gosnold posts no Town Meeting minutes online, and its 2025 Annual Town Report covers only the May 2025 Annual and February 2026 Special Town Meetings).
Titles are short descriptions of each article from the official record; the quoted words are the Town Clerk’s. A vote at Town Meeting is not the final word on everything: some articles also need a ballot vote (such as a tax override) or the Attorney General’s approval (bylaws).
Members
Sarah BerryMember · Elected townwide · at 5 of 5 meetingsStewart YoungMember · Elected townwide · at 5 of 5 meetings"At X of Y meetings" counts the members the minutes list as present at the start of each meeting in this record. Members who step out are listed on each meeting page.
Attendance
14 full-board meetings so far this year, through July 20. Ties share a rank.
1Win Sanford14 of 14 meetings Every meeting100%2Sarah Berry13 of 14 meetings93%2Stewart Young13 of 14 meetings93%From the official minutes: full-board meetings only (committee meetings are not counted). Members are counted only for meetings held while they served, and arriving late counts as attending. The minutes rarely say why a member was absent. Not shown: 2025, because too many of that year’s meetings are missing from the posted minutes.
A monthly email on its votes and who was there, starting in November.
Meetings
About missing minutes
Loaded: Selectboard minutes from January 24, 2025 through July 20, 2026, from the town’s Agenda Center (nothing older is posted online, and no minutes are posted for October–December 2025). Executive session minutes are not included; scanned minutes were read with text recognition and checked. Gosnold’s minutes usually record votes as “Duly seconded. So moved. Unanimous vote.”, often with a roll call of who was present; those are shown as every member present voting yes. Many motions don’t say who made them. Votes recorded only as “So moved” show the result only. No split votes are recorded. We will ask the town to confirm any noted vote.
Votes where members disagreed
Most board votes are unanimous. These are the ones where at least one member voted no or abstained, newest first.
Jun 4Approve the Hadley Cove septic system application as presentedMotion: approve the Hadley Cove septic system application as presentedPassed 2–0 · see note
June 4, 2026: Approve the Hadley Cove septic system application as presented
Approve the Hadley Cove septic system application as presented
Yes: Berry, SanfordThe minutes say Stewart Young abstained and the motion carried; with three members, that means the others voted yes.
From the minutes
“Win Sanford moved to approve the Hadley Cove septic system application as presented. Sarah Berry seconded the motion. Stewart Young abstained. The motion carried. The Board also discussed a recent septic system concern previously reported to the Board..” (Motion: Sanford, second: Berry)
From the Gosnold Selectboard’s official minutes, posted in the town’s Agenda Center. We check every vote against the members present and quote the exact wording. MassVoter never grades or scores officials.
How to read these pagesWhere the votes come from, how we check them against the official minutes, what isn't included yet, and how to report a mistake.About city pages →