MATTAPOISETT — After three months of debate and uncertainty on whether the Mattapoisett Select Board would expand to a five member board, the Board’s fate has been sealed.

On Friday, Aug. 22, Gov. Maura Healey signed into law a bill that will expand the Select Board from three to five members, ending a process that began when Town Meeting approved expansion on Tuesday, May 12.

“As soon as it was signed by the governor, it became the law,” said state Rep. Mark Sylvia, who jointly filed the petition article with Sen. Mark Montigny after it was approved at Town Meeting.

Healey signed the bill into law amid efforts to hold a Special Town Meeting to maintain a three member board and rescind the Town Meeting vote.

This effort comes in the form of a citizens petition, which Paul Criscuolo started after speaking with some friends and noticing that “many people” were upset and surprised by Town Meeting’s outcome.

Criscuolo had questioned why the Board’s set-up needed to change when it was unclear whether there would be any efficiency gain and argued that the Board demonstrated “no evidence of dysfunction.”

The initial citizens petition had been submitted by Nicki Demakis, who previously stated that expanding the Board would create opportunities for “many more people to provide … service to the town.”

Demakis also argued at Town Meeting that a larger Board could “leverage more perspectives and skills, enhancing the depth and breadth of decision making.”

Town Meeting’s approval brought the petition before the Select Board, which voted to move the expansion request to state officials on Tuesday, June 10.

Filed jointly by Syliva and Montigny, the bill was enacted on Thursday, Aug. 21 in both the Massachusetts House and Senate and was signed into law by Healey one day later.

Criscuolo said he found it “amazing” that the petition went through the Legislature in three months, noting that the process can often take close to 12 months.

He attributed the quick process to efforts made by Sylvia and Montigny, but noted that “this is not what the folks want.”

Sylvia said that since the law is now in effect, the town will convert to a five member Select Board come the Annual Town Election in May 2026.

He noted the town will “inevitably follow” a process to fill seats in the Annual Town Election next May.

During the 2026 election, the three candidates who receive the most votes will be elected to the Select Board. The candidate with the most votes will serve for three years, the second-place candidate will serve for two years and the third candidate will serve for one year.

According to Demakis, this process is done for stability and to ensure only two seats appear on the ballot each year following the 2026 election.

“There’s only going to be two people who are up for reelection at any given time because they serve a three year term,” she said.

On Friday, Aug. 22, Town Clerk Catherine Heuberger certified Criscuolo’s petition, which garnered over 280 signatures at the time of submission, according to Criscuolo. He also noted there are more signatures to send in.

Receiving more than the required 200 signatures to call for a Special Town Meeting, the town is legally required to have a Special Town Meeting, despite Healey signing the bill into law.

However, no matter the outcome of Special Town Meeting, the Select Board will still become a five member board in May.

At a Select Board meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 26, member Jordan Collyer noted that any vote at the Special Town Meeting would be “non-binding and more like an opinion poll.”

He stated that the town is obligated to hold a Special Town Meeting, "irrelevant of cost, practicality or common sense.”

The Select Board is required to schedule a Special Town Meeting that takes place within 45 days of the citizen petition being certified and has not yet decided on a date.