MassVoter.com← StoughtonMunicipal votes · 2019–2020 Board
Stoughton Select Board
How the Stoughton Select Board voted, from the Select Board’s official minutes. 5 Select Board members elected townwide for three-year terms. By June 25, 2019 Joseph Mokrisky had taken Richard Hill’s place on the board. The 2019 reorganization minutes are not online; the June 25, 2019 minutes list Robert O’Regan as Chairman and Michael Sullivan as Vice-Chairman, so this term starts on that date as a placeholder. Only two 2019 meetings and a few 2020 meetings have minutes online. Covers 5 meetings, June 25 to May 12, 2020.
A monthly email on what it voted on, starting in November.
What does the Select Board 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 Select Board, votes the town budget and town bylaws.
Sources: Massachusetts Select Board Handbook (MMA) · Mass. Division of Local Services: the town budgetYour Stoughton ballot: 13 quizzes, about a minute each.
Start my ballot →Board years
Coming up
From the agendas Stoughton posts on its official site. Agendas can change; the posted agenda is the official one.
Members
Stephen CaveyMember · Elected townwide · at 5 of 5 meetingsChristine HoweMember · Elected townwide · at 5 of 5 meetings
Joseph MokriskyMember · 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.
Meetings
About missing minutes
Loaded: Stoughton Select Board (formerly the Board of Selectmen) minutes from January 2, 2018 through August 28, 2026, from the town’s Agenda Center. Big gap: the town’s website has minutes for only 2 of the board’s 2019 meetings and 13 of its 2020 meetings, plus more than 20 other meetings from 2018 to 2024 that have an agenda but no minutes; MassVoter is asking the town for them. A few files on the website are filed under the wrong date or hold a different meeting’s minutes; we load each file under the meeting it really records and list these for the town. Meetings after August 28, 2026 are not posted yet. Forums and information sessions listed with the board’s agendas have no minutes and are not shown. Nearly every minutes file is a scanned image, which MassVoter read with text recognition and checked by hand. Stoughton’s minutes name who made and seconded each motion and give a count (for example “the motion passed 5 - yes 0 - no”). When the count covers every member present with no one voting no or abstaining, or the minutes say the vote was unanimous, every member present is shown voting yes. When some members voted no or abstained and the minutes do not say who, we show the count only, with a note; we never guess who voted which way from the discussion. Older minutes (2018 to 2021) often list each member’s roll-call vote, and those are shown by name. Where the minutes give no count or names, we show the result only. Votes taken by other boards at joint meetings (for example the School Committee or the Board of Assessors) are left out, and members who recused themselves are left out of that vote. 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.
May 12ApproveMotion: Mr. Sullivan made a motion to approve, seconded by Mr. Cavey.…Passed 4–0 · see note
May 12, 2020: Approve
Mr. Sullivan made a motion to approve, seconded by Mr. Cavey. On a roll call, it was voted 4-0- 1, Motion carries. Mr. Mokrisky was not present. Mr. Cavey voted yes, Ms. Howe voted yes, Mr. Sullivan voted yes, Mr. O'Regan voted yes. .
Yes: Cavey, Howe, O'Regan, SullivanThe minutes say Mr. Mokrisky was not present for this vote.
From the minutes
“Mr. Sullivan made a motion to approve, seconded by Mr. Cavey. On a roll call, it was voted 4-0- 1, Motion carries. Mr. Mokrisky was not present. Mr. Cavey voted yes, Ms. Howe voted yes, Mr. Sullivan voted yes, Mr. O'Regan voted yes. ..” (Motion: Sullivan, second: Cavey)
May 5Form a Board that would be called the Covid-19…Motion: Mr. Cavey made a motion to form a Board that would…Passed 3–1 · No: Cavey
May 5, 2020: Form a Board that would be called the Covid-19 Advisory Board to The Stoughton Select Board
Mr. Cavey made a motion to form a Board that would be called the Covid-19 Advisory Board to The Stoughton Select Board. They would be responsible to review current policies and provide an audit of the current policies. They would also, with their expertise, provide policy recommendations. Finally, they would provide formal responses to questions from the Board of Selectmen that are posed as formal requests. Mr. Cavey decided on the size of the Advisory Board to be seven to nine seats. Ms. Howe seconded the motion. Ms. Howe thanked Mr. Cavey and wanted to clarify that the work of this Advisory Committee would be to report back to the Board and looking at policies of the Board vs. Town Operations. Mr. Cavey confirmed that to be the intent. She felt this can serve a valuable purpose. Mr. Mokrisky questioned whether this committee would deal with policies involving Covid-19 only. The Chairman responded that it would be advising the Board on policies as they are effected by Covid emergencies, Mr. Chairman did ask if this would be a group they could look to for advice on town elections and public safety. Mr. Mokrisky felt they have staff to ask and wouldn't need a citizens' committee for this purpose. He doesn't agree with this idea, feeling Town Manager and her staff have met challenges in Stoughton for the good of the people. He suggests that staff ask the Board if anything is needed. Mr. Cavey agreed that Town staff are outstanding but stated that his compiled list contains seve
Yes: Howe, Mokrisky, O'ReganNo: Cavey
From the minutes
“Mr. Cavey made a motion to form a Board that would be called the Covid-19 Advisory Board to The Stoughton Select Board. They would be responsible to review current policies and provide an audit of the current policies. They would also, with their expertise, provide policy recommendations. Finally, they would provide formal responses to questions from the Board of Selectmen that are posed as formal requests. Mr. Cavey decided on the size of the Advisory Board to be seven to nine seats. Ms. Howe seconded the motion. Ms. Howe thanked Mr. Cavey and wanted to clarify that the work of this Advisory Committee would be to report back to the Board and looking at policies of the Board vs. Town Operations. Mr. Cavey confirmed that to be the intent. She felt this can serve a valuable purpose. Mr. Mokrisky questioned whether this committee would deal with policies involving Covid-19 only. The Chairman responded that it would be advising the Board on policies as they are effected by Covid emergencies, Mr. Chairman did ask if this would be a group they could look to for advice on town elections and public safety. Mr. Mokrisky felt they have staff to ask and wouldn't need a citizens' committee for this purpose. He doesn't agree with this idea, feeling Town Manager and her staff have met challenges in Stoughton for the good of the people. He suggests that staff ask the Board if anything is needed. Mr. Cavey agreed that Town staff are outstanding but stated that his compiled list contains several people with PhDs, heavily involved in these questions. He believes Town staff do not have the same expertise. Ms. Howe agreed with Mr. Mokrisky that she doesn't want this to take over the operations of Town staff but if it is simply advisory and educational, which the purpose seems to be, then she sees no issues with it. She feels they may get some valuable information from this. Mr. Mokrisky suggested that any advice could be called into the Town Manager. He doesn't question Mr. Cavey's motive but sees this as a difference of opinion. He added that if there is a policy the Board needs to make, they could have an emergency meeting but doesn't think the extra layer is needed. The Chairman stated that he doesn't hear this as a challenge to Town Manager or staff but as being more open to advice and a good thing that can only help the Board. He stated that Town staff has a lot on their plate and sees this as a tool that can also provide expertise staff may not have. Some discussion followed, clarifying that this Advisory Committee would not be interacting with staff but advisory only to the Board of Selectmen. On a roll call, the motion made by Mr. Cavey was voted 3-1, Ms. Howe voted yes, Mr. Mokrisky voted yes, Mr. O'Regan : voted yes. Mr. Cavey opposed..” (Motion: Cavey, second: Howe)
Jun 25Appoint Nicholas Petitpas to the Energy & Sustainability Committee,…Motion: Chairman O'Regan suggested the original motion be taken by roll call.…Passed Unanimous, 5 present · see note
June 25, 2019: Appoint Nicholas Petitpas to the Energy & Sustainability Committee, Paul Demusz as Zoning Board of Appeals alternate and Joe Mokrisky to the Norfolk County Advisory Board
Chairman O'Regan suggested the original motion be taken by roll call. Each member voted in favor. / Mr. Sullivan's original motion for the appointments was voted unanimously (5-0).
Mr. Sullivan’s motion appears earlier in the minutes (“This motion was seconded,” without naming who); it was taken by roll call and each member voted in favor (5-0).
From the minutes
“Chairman O'Regan suggested the original motion be taken by roll call. Each member voted in favor. / Mr. Sullivan's original motion for the appointments was voted unanimously (5-0)..” (Motion: Sullivan)
From the Stoughton Select Board’s official minutes, posted in the town’s Agenda Center. We check every vote against the Select Board members present and quote the exact wording. MassVoter never grades or scores officials. Select Board member photos: video stills from Stoughton Media Access Corporation (SMAC, Stoughton’s local cable TV), each from a program that names the member on screen: Joseph Mokrisky from “Community Forum - Joe Mokrisky - Chairman of Select Board” (2021); Debra Roberts from “Stoughton Politics with...This Guy: Talking with Debra Roberts” (2025); Stephen Cavey from “Stoughton Politics with... This Guy: Interview with Select Board Chair Stephen Cavey” (2025); Scott Carrara from “Community Forum - Scott Carrara - Running for Stoughton Board of Selectmen” (2021); Lori Jacques from “A Lioness & You on the Watch: Interview with Select Board Candidate Lori Jacques” (2026). Former members show initials.
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