Town Edition
Berkshire County
Washington, Massachusetts
In 2015, in a town of fewer than 500 people, the voters who filled the Town Hall on Summit Hill Road decided that if no company would run high-speed internet up their mountain, they would pay to run it themselves. They authorized the borrowing, the town strung its own fiber past nearly every home, and by 2020 the Washington Municipal Light Plant was carrying the internet to about 99 percent of houses in town. That decision was made the way Washington makes every big decision, by the registered voters who show up to Town Meeting and raise a hand. This guide shows you how to get into that room.
Washington at a Glance
Sources: Massachusetts DESE, school and district profiles · US Census Bureau (data.census.gov).
- County: Berkshire. Washington covers about 38.8 square miles in the central Berkshire hills, and nearly two thirds of it is conservation land, with the entire western half made up of October Mountain State Forest, the largest state forest in Massachusetts, and Pittsfield Watershed lands.
- Government: open Town Meeting, with an elected three-member Select Board and a Town Administrator appointed by the board, a part-time office shared with neighboring Middlefield.
- Schools: the Central Berkshire Regional School District, about 1,530 students across seven towns, led by Superintendent Michael Henault.
How Washington’s Government Works
Washington runs on an open Town Meeting, which means there are no elected Town Meeting members at all: every registered voter in Washington is a member, and any of them can walk in, speak, and vote on the budget. Voters also elect a 3 member Select Board to set policy between meetings and the town’s seat on the regional School Committee. The Select Board hires a professional Town Administrator to run the town day to day. So the money is voted by whoever shows up, the direction is set by the Select Board, and the daily work is carried out by the Town Administrator.
Town Meeting
The legislative body, and it is not a committee. Every registered voter in Washington is a member. Town Meeting adopts the annual budget, passes town bylaws, and approves major spending. This is direct democracy in its literal sense.
Select Board
Three members elected town-wide. They set policy, sign the warrants that decide what reaches Town Meeting, appoint residents to many town boards, and hire and supervise the Town Administrator.
Town Administrator
The appointed staff officer who handles the town’s daily administration and budget preparation, a part-time office shared with Middlefield, answering to the elected Select Board.
School Committee
Fifteen members from the seven district towns, each elected by its own town’s voters. The committee sets school policy, approves the district budget, and hires the Superintendent.
- Residents elect the 3 members of the Select Board and the town’s seat on the School Committee.
- The Select Board hires the Town Administrator and decides what goes on the Town Meeting warrant.
- Town Meeting votes the budget and the bylaws, and every registered voter present can vote.
- You take part: register at 16, vote at 18, and once you are registered you are already a member of Town Meeting.
Civic Calendar
- Select Board: meets weekly on Monday evenings at 7:00 PM at Washington Town Hall, 8 Summit Hill Road. The agenda is posted in advance, so check the town calendar before you go.
- Town Meeting: the Annual Town Meeting is held in the spring, and the town can call a Special Town Meeting when business cannot wait.
- Town elections: the Annual Town Election is held on the third Saturday in May, and one Select Board seat is on the ballot each year. The next is in spring 2027.
- State and federal elections: even-numbered years. The 2026 primary and general are this fall.
Explore the Washington Edition
- Town Administrator’s OfficeThe town’s chief administrator
- Select BoardYour three board members
- School CommitteeSuperintendent & committee
- Town DepartmentsWho does what at Town Hall
- Boards & CommissionsWhere residents serve
- LegislatorsYour voice in Boston & D.C.
- Washington HistoryNamed for a General, in 1777
- DemographicsWho lives in Washington
- Non-ProfitsCommunity organizations
- Student DataCentral Berkshire schools by the numbers
Your County Officials
Two of the people with the most direct power over your life are elected countywide. The district attorney decides who gets charged with a crime, and what they get charged with. The sheriff runs the county jail. Both of them answer to the voters of Berkshire County, and that includes Washington. They appear on your ballot. Now you know what to look for.
Every county in Massachusetts elects its own, and the job is the same everywhere: the charging decisions, the jail. Look up any town in the state and see who holds these two offices there.
Your First Civic Action in Washington
You do not have to wait until you can vote to be heard in your own town. Here is how to take a real concern to the people who decide.
- Pick the right body. Town policy, roads, and police or fire go to the Select Board. Schools go to the School Committee. The budget and bylaws are voted by Town Meeting.
- Find the meeting. The Select Board meets weekly on Monday evenings at Washington Town Hall, 8 Summit Hill Road, and the agenda is posted in advance.
- Know your members. Three Select Board members are elected town-wide, so every one of them answers to you.
- Speak. Meetings are open to the public and residents may address the board. Check the agenda for how to sign up.
- Or skip the trip. Report a pothole, a road washout, or a downed tree to the Highway Department, which is the department that owns the repair.
- Town Hall: 8 Summit Hill Road, Washington, MA 01223. Select Board office 413-623-8878 x1.
- Town Clerk & agendas: 413-623-8878 x105, with meeting agendas and minutes posted at washington-ma.gov.
- Public schools: the Central Berkshire Regional School District, 413-684-0320, cbrsd.org.
Local government works best when residents show up. Find your Select Board, speak at a meeting on the town’s published calendar, or simply register to vote and take your seat at Town Meeting.