Local Government in Massachusetts

Overview

Massachusetts has 351 cities and towns. Every one has its own elected government, its own school committee, its own budget, and its own civic identity. Local government is where most people first encounter democracy in action: a school budget hearing, a zoning dispute, a city council vote, or a town meeting. It is also where a single engaged resident can have an outsized impact.

Cities and Towns: What Is the Difference?

Massachusetts has approximately 54 cities and 297 towns. The distinction is more than a name; it reflects how each community is legally organized and how it governs itself.

Cities adopted a city charter, a formal governing document that replaces the default rules set by state law. Cities are typically larger and more densely populated, and they have a mayor or city manager as a chief executive and a city council as the legislative body.
Towns operate under state general law rather than a custom charter, though towns can also adopt charters. Towns historically governed themselves through town meeting, where all registered voters gathered to vote directly on local matters.

In practice the formal city-town distinction has blurred over time. Some small communities are technically cities; some large communities remain towns by choice. What matters more is the specific form of government each community uses, which can vary considerably.

Forms of City Government

Strong Mayor-Council: The mayor is directly elected and serves as chief executive. The mayor appoints department heads, proposes the annual budget, and has significant independent authority. The city council is the legislative body, passing ordinances and approving the budget. Boston, Worcester, Springfield, and Lowell use variations of this model.
Council-Manager: The city council is elected and sets policy, but instead of an elected mayor running operations, the council hires a professional city manager. The city manager appoints department heads and implements council policy. This model separates politics from administration. Some communities have a ceremonial mayor who presides over meetings but lacks executive authority.
Weak Mayor-Council: Some cities have an elected mayor with more limited executive authority. Major appointments may require council confirmation, and the mayor may serve on the council rather than separately. This hybrid sits between the strong mayor and council-manager structures.

Forms of Town Government

Open Town Meeting: The most common form of local government in Massachusetts, used by the majority of its 297 towns. Any registered voter may attend and vote at town meeting, typically held once or twice a year. Town meeting approves the annual budget, passes local bylaws, authorizes borrowing, and addresses zoning changes. Between meetings a select board and town administrator handle day-to-day operations. Open town meeting is a direct form of democracy with roots going back to the 1630s.
Representative Town Meeting: Used by roughly 40 Massachusetts towns. A fixed body of elected town meeting members, organized by precinct, replaces the open gathering. Only town meeting members may vote, though all residents may attend and speak. This variant was introduced in the early 20th century as towns grew too large for open meetings to be practical.
Town Council: A small number of communities have replaced town meeting with an elected town council that serves as the governing and legislative body. This structure is similar to a city council, but the community retains the designation of town.

Key Local Officials

Mayor: In communities with an elected mayor, the mayor is the chief executive of city or town government, proposes the annual budget, and appoints department heads. Mayors serve fixed terms, usually two or four years.
City or Town Manager: A professional administrator hired by the elected governing body. The manager runs daily operations, including hiring, budget management, and service delivery. The manager is accountable to the council or select board, not directly to voters.
Select Board: The executive board of most Massachusetts towns, typically three or five elected members serving overlapping three-year terms. The select board sets policy and represents the town. In 2022 the Legislature allowed communities to rename their Board of Selectmen to Select Board, and many have done so.
City or Town Council: The legislative body of cities and some towns. Councils pass local ordinances, approve budgets, set tax rates, and provide oversight of the executive branch. Councilors are typically elected in non-partisan races.
City or Town Clerk: The keeper of records: maintains official municipal documents, oversees local elections, and issues licenses and permits. Often the most practical starting point for any resident seeking information about local government.
School Committee: An elected body that governs the public schools. Separate from municipal government. Sets local education policy, approves the district budget, negotiates educator contracts, and hires the superintendent.

Education Governance at the Local Level

Public schools in Massachusetts are governed separately from the rest of municipal government. Even though school budgets are approved locally, they are governed by a different elected body: the school committee.

School committees are elected by district residents to serve staggered terms, typically three years. The committee sets local education policy within state requirements, approves the district budget, negotiates and approves educator contracts, and hires, evaluates, and when necessary dismisses the superintendent. Meetings are public and open to all residents, making school committee sessions among the most accessible entry points for civic engagement on education issues.

Superintendents are professional administrators hired by the school committee to run the day-to-day operations of the district. They implement school committee policy, manage central office staff, supervise principals, and serve as the district’s liaison to DESE. Superintendents are not elected; they work under contract.

Find Your District Superintendent
Massachusetts Education Overview

Local Elections

Most municipal elections in Massachusetts are non-partisan; candidates run without party labels. Local elections typically take place in November, with preliminary elections in September used to narrow crowded fields.

Voter turnout in local elections is substantially lower than in state and federal elections, often below 20 percent. Massachusetts allows no-excuse vote-by-mail in all local elections, and many communities also offer early in-person voting — both options make it easier to participate on your own schedule. That means engaged, organized residents can have far more influence at the local level than anywhere else in the political system. Terms for most local offices are two or three years, with overlapping terms ensuring continuity of leadership.

Home Rule and Local Authority

Massachusetts grants its cities and towns significant autonomy through home rule, codified in the Home Rule Procedures Act of 1966 (M.G.L. c. 43B). Under home rule, municipalities can adopt their own charters, pass local ordinances, and make decisions on local matters without needing approval from the state Legislature, as long as they do not conflict with state law.

Home rule does not give cities and towns unlimited authority. State law controls labor relations, civil rights, environmental regulation, and education standards, among other areas. The state also controls local aid, the funding the state sends to municipalities, giving Beacon Hill significant leverage over local budgets.

How Local Government Connects to State Government

Chapter 70 education funding: The state determines how much money each district receives under the education funding formula (M.G.L. c. 70), accounting for enrollment, student demographics, and local wealth.
DESE oversight: DESE sets curriculum frameworks, graduation requirements, and accountability standards that all local districts must follow. Districts that chronically underperform can be placed under state receivership and lose local control.
State mandates: State law requires local schools to offer civics projects, special education services, and various other programs. Local budgets bear much of the cost, but the requirements come from Beacon Hill.
Your state legislators: Your state representative and state senator represent your city or town at the General Court. They vote on local aid formulas, education mandates, municipal bond legislation, and everything else that affects your community’s ability to govern itself.

Getting Involved Locally

Local government is the most accessible level of government in Massachusetts and, for most residents, the most consequential for daily life.

Attend public meetings. Under the Massachusetts Open Meeting Law (M.G.L. c. 30A), nearly all public body meetings must be open to the public. Select board meetings, school committee meetings, planning board hearings, and zoning board sessions are all open. Check your city or town website for schedules.
Speak at public comment. Most public bodies allow residents to speak during a public comment period. Showing up, even briefly, signals that residents are paying attention.
Apply to local boards and commissions. Cities and towns have dozens of appointed volunteer boards: planning, conservation, historical commission, council on aging, veterans services committee. Most have vacancies and actively seek applicants. Your city or town clerk can tell you what is open.
Run for local office. Becoming a school committee member, select board member, or city councilor typically requires gathering relatively few signatures to get on the ballot. Local races are often decided by small margins.
Vote in local elections. Turnout is low. Your vote carries real weight.

Key Resources

See how local government fits within the wider structure of Massachusetts government.

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