SUMNER — The town’s emergency director, Tom Standard, resigned his post Tuesday after selectmen and the budget committee voted to recommend to town voters the stipend for the position be cut by 50 percent.

Standard, who has been the emergency director for Sumner as well as the towns of  Buckfield and Hartford has been in the position since 1996. He was paid $1,800 per year for his work but said Wednesday he wasn’t leaving because of the reduction in pay.

“I never did the thing for money for goodness sake, ” Standard said. He said he resigned mostly  because the  town’s vision for emergency preparedness under current elected officials was a departure from what had previously been established.

Standard also said he annually worked to secure state and federal funds for emergency preparedness for the town via grant writing and that more than covered the cost of his stipend.

During his tenure in Sumner, he received grant money totaling approximately $15,000. The funding was used  to hold educational classes in handling emergencies, table top exercises, a town generator, newsletters and radios.

Since 2008 most of the EMA expenses including his stipend have been paid through grants, Standard said.

Standard also is the EMA director and administrator for the towns of Buckfield and Hartford and will continue to serve those towns.

On Tuesday, Mary Ann Haxton, chair of the board of selectmen, thanked Standard for all his work in EMA and praised his efforts. Standard also agreed to serve out the remainder of his term and would work to help whomever replaces him with a smooth transition, he said.

Standard said he had hoped to serve one more year in the position and had planned to leave the post next year anyway.  “The time was just right for me to go,” he said.

The town will be seeking applicants to fill Standard’s spot as soon as possible because training starts as early as Monday. 

Those interested are urged to call the town office for applications.

In other business Tuesday:

• The board considered amendments to the town’s comprehensive plan.  Any proposed changes would require a 30-day notice for a public  hearings before a vote could be taken to make the change.

• Road Commissioner Jim Keach said the Maine Department of Transportation will begin spraying herbicide along the Greenwood Road, routes 140 and 219 this summer.  If residents on those roads have questions or do not want their property sprayed, they should contact the MDOT’s offices in Dixfield at 562-4228.

• Town Clerk Susan Runes also reported that this year’s municipal budget is less than last year. Runes also said that the town’s budget surplus had grown $135,000 largely because of higher than anticipated payments from the state.

Freelance writer Mary Standard contributed to this report. Standard is the wife of Tom Standard.