Allenstown residents chose to reduce the potential operating budget at their deliberative session on Saturday, saving $25,000 by eliminating curbside recycling, which has emerged as a major talking point in recent years.

The amended $5.5 million budget and all other warrant articles will be voted on at the polls on Election Day, March 12.

The estimated tax impact equals $1.32 per $1,000 of assessed property value, about $400 more per year for a home worth $300,000.

A long discussion ensued when voters were asked if they favored separating the town clerk and tax collector roles into two positions in an attempt to expand the pool of candidates for tax collector by loosening boundary restrictions.

An amendment, however, that sought to leave the jobs combined as one passed.

On the school side, all the articles on the warrant will appear as written, including a $13.66 million operational budget. Increased funding for special education opened a dialogue, a common narrative at the annual school meeting.

The meeting opened with a presentation illustrating how $11.5 million, paid for with bonds or notes, for new clarifiers at the Allenstown Wastewater Treatment Facility would improve water quality and allow the select board to apply for federal, state or other aid.

Mike Frascinella, the economic development committee chairman, cited a way for the town to save money, explaining that curbside recycling was no longer viable because the town’s current 10-year contract with Casella waste management expires at the end of August and will cost more.

Allenstown Town Administrator Derik Goodine agreed.

“So we’re not going to get rid of recycling,” Goodine said. “We’re talking about getting rid of curbside recycling and having an appointment-only transfer station. The reason is in the current contract. . . we pay zero recycling included in the collection fee that we pay now.”

The proposal to cut $25,000 from the recycling budget moved the figure from $227,000 to $202,000.

Voters passed as written a request to add $225,000 to the municipal building capital reserve fund, the money coming from an unassigned fund balance, to address the aging town hall.

The current town hall, about 100 years old, lacks privacy (people in first-floor bathrooms, someone claimed, can hear second-floor toilets flush) and is in need of repair.

Article 12 asked if residents were in favor of “discontinuing the combined office of town clerk/tax collector.”

If passed as written, the next article would have seamlessly requested that the tax collector be appointed by the select board, not by a town vote.

The logic? An elected official must live in Allenstown. A select board appointee could live beyond the town boundaries, which means a larger pool of candidates to choose from.

Article 12 was amended by retired fire chief Paul St. Germain, a candidate for the current town clerk/tax collector role, who won by a 15-12 vote to keep the status quo of two jobs for one person. 

St. Germain cited a still-standing policy from eight years ago, which combined the jobs and used an election to choose rather than a board selection. His amendment read, “Shall we express that the position of town clerk/tax collector to be an elected position as approved by the voters in the 2016.”

Asked if he sought the amendment to keep the candidate pool smaller, limiting it to just town residents and increasing his chance of winning, St. Germain said no, but added that he understood why people may believe that.

Annual compensation for the full-time clerk and part-time deputy clerk positions is $69,920, according to the town budget.

On the school side, Article 2 passed as written, asking that $75,000 be added to the special education general expendable fund. School board member Kris Bellerose expressed the need for more funding in this area, saying Deerfield and Epsom have expanded their special ed budgets.

“So all towns have greater than 20% increases in their special education budgets,” Bellerose said, “and Allenstown has an increase of 14 percent over last year.”