NEW SHARON — After slowly working their way through election of town officers Saturday morning, voters in New Sharon approved all 49 articles for a total 2012 budget of $773,169 during the annual meeting held at Cape Cod Hill School.

A selectman since 1977, Maynard Webster was reinstated for another three-year term.

Voters elected Forrest Bonney to the Board of Selectman for one year to complete the term of Larry Donald, who resigned. Road Commissioner Don Lowe retained his position.

Bonita Tompkins was elected treasurer and voters agreed to a $1,500 raise for her position. The raise was the only item that upped the requested budget of  $771,669.

In other elections, Rose Mary Eller was re-elected town clerk and tax collector. David Ames will serve a five-year term as a Water District trustee and Lloyd Perkins was named to a one-year trustee position.

Although some residents questioned the need to digitize town tax maps, the majority approved paying $10,000 to Aerial Survey and Photo of Norridgewock.

Digitizing the 20-year-old tax maps would normally cost the town $18,000, but due to the poor economy, Aerial Survey will do it basically for cost, Webster told voters.

The new maps would be more accurate and state updates could be superimposed.

Voters also agreed to spend $8,000 for protective firefighter clothing. Acting Chief Gerry Provencher said four members are joining and the cost to outfit one is about $2,000.

The volunteer department has undergone some internal issues this past year and Provencher was made acting chief in October. Since then, he has worked with selectmen to develop bylaws for the department, he said.

Voters approved raising $282,620 from taxation for construction and maintenance of roads. The rest of the $362,998 roads budget will be taken from paving accounts that were carried over and from Urban-Rural Initiative Program funds. Road commissioner nominee Dennis McCourt questioned why nearly half the amount was going to snow-removal contracts.

“You need to look into it,” he told selectmen. “We’re spending half the amount on something that melts away.”

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