LIVERMORE FALLS – Selectmen voted 4-1 Monday to go forward with deciding annual warrant articles by secret-ballot at the polls June 12.

Chairman Julie Deschesne opposed the motion because the board voted Dec. 4 to change from an open meeting to a secret-ballot vote at the polls.

Deschesne said she wasn’t ready to make the decision to go forward with the referendum because of a tight time frame leading up to it and no state-revenue sharing figures have been forwarded.

Selectman Bill Demaray said the board needs to make a decision, stick to it and go forward.

Prior to Monday’s vote, selectmen and residents discussed the change.

Resident Denise Rodzen asked the reasoning behind the change. She said residents voted 195-175 in a 2004 straw poll to keep a traditional town meeting.

Selectmen said voting at the polls draws more people than a town meeting.

Rodzen asked why they were not listening to the people again.

The 2004 vote was a “very close vote,” Deschesne said, and a referendum gives more people more opportunity to vote, including by absentee ballot.”

According to Maine Municipal Association and other sources, Demaray said, a lot of towns are going to referendum vote and a lot of people are happy with it once they try it. He said he has heard no negative comments about a referendum.

“Everybody would have a chance to vote,” Demaray said.

Selectmen plan to hold an information meeting to hear comments on the proposed budget before they finalize it and schedule a hearing.

Demaray said voters will have options on budget articles and at times there could be three recommendations: from selectmen, from the Budget Committee, and from neither.

Rodzen questioned what happens if there is a tie vote or they choose none of the above.

The only thing about a referendum is if an article fails, the reason is not known.

The public needs lots of notice and lots of information to be informed because if they don’t, the vote will flounder, Rodzen’s husband, Eric Rodzen, said.

Budget Committee Chairwoman Louise Chabot said she wasn’t sure how she feels about it. There would be more people voting but they might not know what they were voting on, she said, and say no to everything.

“We’re going to give people choices,” Demaray said.

Former Selectman Bernal Lake said he didn’t care either way, but he didn’t like the way the December vote was taken late into a meeting after an executive session.

Resident Fred Nadeau said his concern is that two or three years from now a new board of selectmen won’t continue the method, and they’ll end up with the town shut down again.

He said a charter would set governance guidelines.

Selectman David Lemire also suggested that a charter would allow the town to revert back to the prior year’s budget if articles fail until a new one is approved.