Voters in Boothbay Harbor will head to the polls on May 1 between the hours of 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. to make their pick for one school committee member, and one trustee of the school, sewer district, water district (at-large) and cemetery district. These positions all have only one person officially running.

There are also two contested races, that of the three-year selectman's seat, with incumbent Wendy Wolf and challenger Rendle Jones, and the two-year selectman's seat vacated by former Vice Chairman Jay D. Warren. There are four running for that seat: Chris Haskell, Palmer Payne, Linc Sample and Tricia Warren.

Voters will also be voting on whether to accept the agreement between Boothbay Harbor and Bayville, which “defines and clarifies the physical boundaries of Bayville Village.” This agreement was actually made on Oct. 25, 2013.

For many townspeople, that's the end of it. They've done their civic duty and can watch for the results at www.boothbayregister.com.

However, there is an often overlooked second part of the voting process, which takes place the next day at 9 a.m. at Boothbay Region Elementary School: voting on the town warrant.

A town warrant is the guideline for the entire fiscal year of the town. It contains not only the entire town budget, which voters present at the meeting with agree or disagree with, but also changes in the code that can affect property holders, and guidelines the town selectmen will adhere to during the year.

The town will also vote to allow funds to be carried over from last year, such as funds dedicated to the Route 27 sidewalk project ($25,065) and the former tennis courts area near the school ($15,000).

This year the town warrant also involves the adoption or rejection of the Boothbay Harbor Comprehensive Plan, which is the guiding plan for the next 10 years of the town. A copy of this plan can be found on the Boothbay Harbor town website, www.boothbayharbor.org. Under “Documents” search “Comprehensive Plan.”

The town will also vote on the amount of money being given to the Boothbay Region Ambulance Service, which is the only item the budget committee and selectmen did not agree on. Taxpayers can accept the selectmen's recommendation of $184,801 (the same amount as last year), the budget committee's recommendation of $168,487, or a lower amount.

This year the municipal budget is actually down slightly, which bodes well for property tax rates, which will be set in August. While it does not guarantee that rates will stay flat, according to Town Manager Tom Woodin, rates have “decreased or stayed flat six out of the last seven years.”

There are also multiple code changes, most of them to do with parking ordinances to clarify language that currently exists in the code. In previous versions, different interpretations of the code were possible depending on the reader. The changes seek to bring clarity.

There is also a change to adopt the new state of Maine Floodplain Ordinance (if this is not adopted Boothbay Harbor residents could lose the ability to purchase flood insurance), and an adjustment to the Administration of Government ordinance which works to streamline the hiring process of municipal employees.

Currently the Administration of Government ordinance reads: “The Board of Selectmen shall appoint for one-year terms all municipal officials required by general law, including Deputy Tax Collector, Deputy Treasurer, Assessor, Town Clerk, Deputy Town Clerk, Registrar of Voters, Chief of Police, Police Officers, Harbor Master, Deputy Harbor Master, Fire Chief, Code Enforcement Officer, Building Inspector, Health Officer, Plumbing Inspector, Animal Control Officer, Director of Emergency Management, Deputy Director of Emergency Management and Shellfish Conservation Warden.”

Approval of this change would mean the ordinance would read: “The Board of Selectmen shall appoint for one-year terms all municipal officials required by general law, including, Finance Officer, Town Clerk, Registrar of Voters, Public Works Director, Chief of Police, Harbor Master, Fire Chief, Code Enforcement Officer and Director of Emergency Management.”

All remaining employee appointments would be made at the discretion of the town manager.

Polls to vote for town position will be open on May 1 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. The town meeting will take place on May 2 starting at 9 a.m. at the Boothbay Region Elementary School.

The full Boothbay Harbor Town Warrant can be seen in the April 16 edition of the Boothbay Register on page 7, at the town office, or on the town of Boothbay Harbor's Facebook page.

Woodin and the town selectmen encourage every voter to both vote and attend town meeting.