ROYALTON — Residents on Tuesday rejected an article that would have moved voting on public questions to Australian ballot, opting instead to continue deciding such questions from the floor at the annual Town Meeting.
“I really recognize there’s no way we can argue with the idea of getting more citizens involved in town decisions,” resident Suzanne Long said, during the discussion. “Our towns can only be stronger by (including) more voices.”
However, Long urged the approximately 175 voters gathered to oppose the measure because she said she didn’t think moving to an Australian ballot would effectively increase participation and she worried that voters would lose the opportunity to ask questions and listen to each other the way they do during the floor meeting.
“We are still small enough I think that we can have this group participation,” Long said.
But others, including members of the Selectboard, urged voters to support the change because they said it would give voters who couldn’t make it to the meeting more opportunity to weigh in on town decisions on such issues as land purchases and petition articles.
“I really feel as though it’s similar to building an ADA-compliant ramp so that more people can get inside and have a voice,” said Selectboard member Tim Murphy. It’s “not about tearing down a traditional Town Meeting.”
Long offered to lead a committee to look into other ways of increasing voter participation at Town Meeting. She suggested activities such as a community meal or a pie contest, or using technology in some way. She also asked those gathered to survey people they know who weren’t in attendance to “get a broader idea of why people aren’t coming.”
The proposal to move to Australian ballot voting for public questions failed by a solid margin in a show of cards from the floor.
Also from the floor on Tuesday, voters approved all other articles as written, including a general fund budget of $1.36 million, which is up about 7% from the budget voters approved last year. Due to applying a surplus from last year, the amount to be raised by taxes for the general fund is decreasing by $30,504 or almost 3%.
Voters also approved a highway fund of $1.04 million, which is down less than 0.1% from last year, but would require an additional $29,687 or 3.7%, to be raised by taxes.
Together, the general fund and highway fund are increasing by 1.05% from the spending voters approved in 2019.
Voters approved spending $351,919 for Royalton organizations and $24,924 for social service agencies.
In all-day ballot voting, residents were to decide contested races between Selectboard Chairwoman Sandy Conrad and John P. Dumville for a two-year seat; between incumbent Town Clerk Karmen Bascom and challenger Carol Greene; and between Robert Gray Jr. and Jessica Ryan, who were competing for one year remaining on a three-year White River Valley Unified School District seat.
David Barker was unopposed for a three-year seat vacated by Selectboard member Tim Dreisbach and Jerry Barcelow was also unopposed for a two-year seat he was appointed to.
Nora Doyle-Burr can be reached at ndoyleburr@vnews.com or 603-727-3213.
