Town Leadership
The Hingham Town Administrator’s Office
The Town Administrator
Tom Mayo
When a road goes unplowed or a school roof needs replacing, the person with the most operational control over the response is appointed, not elected. Tom Mayo is the Town Administrator, and the town’s own charge to the office is unusually specific: he manages about 300 non-school employees across 24 municipal departments in 8 buildings, supports roughly 400 elected and appointed officials sitting on more than 60 boards and committees, develops the annual budget for every non-school department, and prepares the warrants that set what Town Meeting gets to vote on. He supports more than 50 Select Board meetings a year. In 2016 the Legislature passed a special act, Chapter 263 of the Acts of 2016, written to define the authority of Hingham’s Town Administrator more sharply. He is appointed by the three elected members of the Select Board, and he serves at their pleasure. So the plan to fix a problem usually crosses his desk first, then goes to the board, and then to Town Meeting.
| Role | Town Administrator (Chief Administrative Officer) |
|---|---|
| Selection | Appointed by the Select Board, not elected |
| Office | Town Hall, 210 Central Street, Hingham, MA 02043 |
| Phone | 781-741-1451 |
| Website | hingham-ma.gov |
What the Town Administrator Does
- Runs the departments. Police, fire, public works, health, recreation and the rest sit inside the 24 municipal departments the Town Administrator manages, and he appoints most of their leaders.
- Builds the budget. Each year he proposes how the town will spend its money on the non-school side, then defends that plan before the Select Board and Town Meeting, which holds the final vote. The school budget is the School Committee’s to propose.
- Answers to the board. He serves at the pleasure of the three elected members of the Select Board and carries out the policies they set.
- Reports to Town Meeting. Major spending and bylaws still need the vote of Town Meeting, and in Hingham that means every registered voter who walks in.
The Administration
- Department heads are appointed by the Town Administrator and carry out policy, from plowing snow to inspecting restaurants.
- The Select Board is the check: it hires and can dismiss the Town Administrator, sets policy, and signs the warrants that put questions before Town Meeting.
- Two assistants share the load, one for Operations and one for Finance, and both sit with the board at its meetings.
- Boards and commissions, many of them appointed by the Select Board, decide questions like zoning, conservation, and licensing.
Contact & Engage
- Town Hall: 210 Central Street, Hingham, MA 02043.
- Town Administrator’s Office: 781-741-1451.
- Report a problem: potholes, broken lights and missed pickups go to Public Works, 781-741-1430.
- Show up: the Select Board meets on its published calendar at Town Hall, and the public is welcome.
Want to weigh in on a town decision? Learn how to contact your officials so they actually hear you.