CAMDEN — With some discussion about process, the Select Board in Camden voted 4 to 1 June 21 to reappoint the town’s police and fire chief, as well as overseer to the poor.

The board also voted unanimously in separate motions to reappoint the town attorney and town manager, as well as other town employees. Watch the meeting here.

Town Manager Audra Caler is now in year two of a three-year contract, and the annual reappointment is a procedural task per the town charter.

Caler is paid $130,000 annually, plus benefits.

Town Attorney Bill Kelly, with the Belfast firm Kelly and Associates LLC, is under contract and currently is paid $74, 568 for the year.

“That’s the structure of it,” said Kelly.

“If there was a question on one of these folks and we didn’t reappoint, how does that work,” asked Select Board member Stephanie French. “Because you just said we are obligated to.”

Kelly responded: “It gets a little fuzzy because these are employees and subject to the personnel code and subject to being able to retain their job unless they are disciplined or removed for a failure to do their job. You can have a situation, and sometimes it occurs that the appointment – which is conferring the authority to that person – fails, and yet they are still an employee. These are some of the oddities that happen in municipal law. It’s an unpleasant thing.”

But, he added, if there were a likelihood of a non-appointment of an employee, there would likely be a parallel personnel action under way.

It can get awkward when the reappointment does not happen but the individual is still an employee, he said.

A motion was then made to reappoint the police and fire chiefs, and the overseer of the poor.  Select board members Tom Hedstrom, Alison McKellar, Chair Bob Falciani and Sophia Romano voted yes; Stephanie French voted no.

French did not say why she opposed the motion, and has not responded to a follow-up query.

Reach Editorial Director Lynda Clancy at lyndaclacny@penbaypilot.com; 207-706-6657