A $5 million budget, a home-rule petition to ban herbicide use and money for increased educational and retirement expenses are set to come before Aquinnah voters at their annual town meeting Tuesday.

The meeting, which will wrap up the spring political season on the Island, begins at 7 p.m. in the Aquinnah town hall. There are 34 articles on the warrant. Longtime town moderator Mike Hebert will preside.

The annual town election is Wednesday in the town hall. Polls are open from noon to 7 p.m. There are five questions on the ballot, including a $325,000 Proposition 2 1/2 override to cover rising educational expenses and a question to change the Aquinnah assessors from an elected to an appointed board. If voters approve, part of the money ($200,000) would come from free cash and the rest from property taxes.

Tensions between the board of selectmen and board of assessors over roles and authority have been ongoing in recent years. Selectmen proposed the change. A warrant article was approved at a special town meeting in February, but the change also requires an affirmative vote at the polls before it can take effect.

The only contest on the ballot is a three-way race for selectman. Incumbent Jim Newman is seeking a sixth term on the board and faces a challenge from Elise LeBovit and Jay Theise.

Town administrator Jeffrey Madison said Aquinnah property taxes and town expenditures are the impetus for several articles on the town warrant, including $200,000 to offset the town’s growing share of educational expenses of the up-Island regional school district.

“There was a substantial increase in the up-Island school district assessment for Aquinnah,” Mr. Madison said, pointing to a growing number of students from Aquinnah as the main reason.

The town is also trying to play catch up on retirement back pay for teachers and staff, including health and pension benefits, Mr. Newman said.

Voters will be asked to approve another $50,000 to go into the town’s other post-employment benefits stabilization fund (OPEB) to cover the town’s retirement funding shortfall for town employees.

“For years and years there were no funds set aside to do this. We need to catch up,” said Mr. Madison, who added that the shortfall is an Islandwide issue.

A vote to file a home-rule petition with the Massachusetts general court granting the town the power to ban herbicide use was placed on the warrant at the request of town residents, Mr. Madison said. West Tisbury and Tisbury have already agreed to join the petition.

Mr. Madison said the petition, spearheaded by Megan Ottens-Sargent, came from residents concerned over power companies such as Eversource spraying herbicides along transmission lines to keep weeds down. Many Island residents have registered their concerns about the unknown long-term effects of herbicides on the environment and in groundwater.

Voters will be asked to grant selectmen the authority to investigate properties taken for back taxes by the town over the years, and report back at a future town meeting with a recommendation on whether the properties should be held for town use or sold.

Mr. Madison said the town has acquired the title to various parcels of property over the years and there has been discussion about whether the town might be better served by selling off the parcels.

“Selectmen are looking for ways to increase the tax base here,” said Mr. Madison. “This is one way they have of adding more slices to the pie so people can get some tax relief.”

Voters will be asked to approve several changes to the town’s personnel bylaws, mostly consisting of clarification on who is in charge of town employees, according to Mr. Madison. There are also numerous amendments related to the possible change of the board of assessors to an appointed board. Mr. Madison would have increased authority if the bylaw changes are approved.

“We wanted to make it clear that they [selectmen] can delegate to the town administrator,” said Mr. Madison.

Assessors request $15,000 to upgrade appraisal software with an archival computer. The request is not recommended by the finance committee. Adam Wilson, a member of the board of assessors, told the Gazette that the installation is a one-time expense and pays for both the software and professional installers.

A request for about $8,500 as the town’s share of the cost of the Dukes County regional emergency communication center will be indefinitely postponed, according to Mr. Madison. The measure has failed at all the other town meetings.

Voters will be asked to approve another $8,500 to support regional human services programs including CORE, First Stop, Healthy Aging MV and substance use disorder prevention. There is an individual article requesting funds for each program.

The town hall became a temporary warming shelter for several Aquinnah residents that lost power during the spate of March storms. A request on the warrant for $10,000 would pay emergency personnel, such as town firefighters or police, to man the warming shelter in the future.

“People can come in and be safe and comfortable,” said Mr. Madison. “We want to be able to provide that service.”

A quorum of 35 voters is needed to convene the meeting.