Thomas J. Calter III (born September 10, 1957 in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

) is the former town administrator of

Kingston, Massachusetts Kingston is a coastal town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 13,708 at the 2020 census. History Before European settlers arrived, Kingston was within the tribal homeland of the Wampanoag people. Several year ...

. He previously represented the 12th Plymouth District, which includes the towns of Kingston and

Plympton Plympton is a suburb of the city of Plymouth in Devon, England. It is in origin an ancient stannary town. It was an important trading centre for locally mined tin, and a seaport before the River Plym silted up and trade moved down river to P ...

and parts of Plymouth,

Duxbury Duxbury (alternative older spelling: "Duxborough") is a historic seaside town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. A suburb located on the South Shore approximately to the southeast of Boston, the population was 16,090 at the 20 ...

, Halifax, and

Middleborough Middleborough (frequently written as Middleboro) is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 24,245 at the 2020 census. History The town was first settled by Europeans in 1661 as Nemasket, later changed to M ...

, in the

Massachusetts House of Representatives The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from 14 counties each divided into single-member ...

. He is a member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

Early life and education

Calter was born on September 10, 1957 in

, Massachusetts and raised in Avon. He attended Cardinal Spellman High School before receiving his BA from North Adams State College and his

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

from Northeastern University.

Career

Prior to his political career, Calter spent more than 30 years working in the environmental services industry. He was elected to the

in 2006 in a short campaign. His predecessor, Tom O'Brien was appointed to the post Treasurer of Plymouth County in August 2006, after it was too late to be taken off the ballot for the primary election. O'Brien won the

popular vote Popularity or social status is the quality of being well liked, admired or well known to a particular group. Popular may also refer to: In sociology * Popular culture * Popular fiction * Popular music * Popular science * Populace, the total ...

in the primary election, but declined the nomination. Calter was selected in a caucus of representatives from the Democratic Town Committees in the district to be the Democratic nominee on the ballot. In the general election, Calter defeated Olly deMacedo by 296 votes. He resigned from the House in 2018 to become town administrator of Kingston.

Controversies

In early 2019, Halifax assessors demanded the payment of personal property taxes and delinquent interest in the amount of $12,511.09 by Jordan Health and Wellness Center, RKP Capital, LLC, of which Thomas Calter is the principal. Calter refused payment and instead insisted on either paying a smaller amount in the sum of $1,151.20 or appealing the issue to the Appellate Tax Board. The issue had been ongoing since mid-2016. Calter resigned in mid-2020 from his position as Town Administrator in Kingston after a public argument with a member of the Board of Selectmen in a local restaurant. The argument was a violation of town conduct policy.

Personal life

Calter and his wife Patty live in Kingston and have three grown children, Ryan, Kerri, and Patrick.

References

Massachusetts House of Representatives profile
1957 births Living people People from Norfolk County, Massachusetts People from Kingston, Massachusetts Northeastern University alumni Democratic Party members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives Massachusetts city managers Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts alumni 21st-century American politicians {{Massachusetts-MARepresentative-stub