Allenstown residents will only have to spend one day approving the ballots for both town and school votes, as the deliberative sessions for both Town Meeting and School District Meeting will take place one after the other on Saturday, Jan. 31.

The deliberative session of Town Meeting will begin at 8:30 a.m. at Allenstown Elementary School. While the deliberative session of School District Meeting has been set for various times over the past two weeks, it would be safest to say it will simply take place once the Town Meeting finishes.

Voting on warrant articles and candidates will take place March 10.

Town
There are 22 articles on the town warrant. The first two are zoning questions, which will not be discussed at the Jan. 31 session. The third refers to those up for election.

Article 4 asks the town for $1,550,000 to finance an increase in the town’s wastewater treatment facility. Half this cost, $775,000 is to be paid by the town of Pembroke, which shares use of the facility. The article states $50,000 would come from fund balance. A three-fifths majority is required for this article to pass, which is recommended by the selectmen and Budget Committee.

Article 5 addresses the town operating budget. The proposed budget comes to $5,338,981. If defeated, a default budget of $5,125,931 would go into effect.

Articles 6 through 19 ask for various amounts to fund capital reserve funds and purchases for police, fire and highway equipment, as well as landfill closure costs and repairs to the Town Hall roof.

Article 20 asks that the road agent become an appointed position, rather than elected.

The final two articles were petitioned. Article 21 asks the town to enact a spending cap for the town and school budgets, setting a maximum annual increase of 2 percent from the previous year’s tax assessment.

Article 22 asks that voters approve a resolution stating that the property tax is unjust and unfair, calls on elected officials to reject the “Pledge,” which promises not to enact sales or income taxes, and to adopt a revenue system that is just and fair.

School
There are five warrant articles to be considered by voters at the deliberative session of School District Meeting.

Article 1 asks for an operating budget of $9,993,048.

Should the article be defeated, the default budget would be set at $9,978,048, a figure that is $144,89 lower than the proposed budget.

Article 2 asks for $41,026 to pay for salary increases agreed to in the collective bargaining agreement between the Allenstown School Board and the Allenstown Paraprofessional Association for the 2009-10 school year.

Article 3 asks for up to $10,000 to be taken from surplus and put in the Building Maintenance Trust Fund. This would not affect the tax rate.

Article 4 askes for up to $10,000 to be taken from surplus and added to the Facilities Acquisition Capital Reserve Fund. This would not affect the tax rate either.