The pros and cons of repealing a pay-as-you-throw (PAYT) refuse program were weighed during a public hearing on the referendum question Monday evening at the Woolwich town office.

Selectmen’s Chairman David King Sr. cautioned at outset that the hearing wasn’t intended to be a forum for debate. On Election Day, voters will decide whether to toss out or stick with the program approved in May.

A “yes” vote ends the PAYT contract with WasteZero, the not-for-profit group based in Andover, Massachusetts. A “no” vote continues town membership in the program that involves the purchase of orange plastic bags for disposal of non-recyclable trash. The program is intended to reduce solid waste disposal costs by encouraging more recycling.

One of the chief complaints is with the bags themselves. Sue Ellen Whittaker held up two plastic bags to show selectmen WasteZero’s bag was smaller than the trash bags she usually buys. It means you need to buy more of their bags because they don’t hold as much trash, she said. The bags are also more expensive, she added.

WasteZero sells two size bags, 15-gallon bags in rolls of 10 for $10; and 30-gallon bags, in rolls of five for $10. WasteZero receives a percentage of the bag sales.

PAYT isn’t saving money, Whittaker continued; it was simply shifting the cost to individual households that were already spending enough for the town’s curbside trash service.

Joshua Kolling-Perin, WasteZero’s director of public engagement, acknowledged some bags might be smaller. He said there’s no industry standard for size, instead their bags were based on volume.

Don Adams asked what selectmen intended to do if voters chose to repeal PAYT. Adams, who spearheaded the PAYT repeal effort, said there had been some conflicting reports what the board’s response would be if the referendum passes.

Selectman Jason Shaw responded that under the terms of the contract, the board had to give WasteZero 60 days notice of termination. “We’d also be responsible for what we owed them for the bags,” he said. WasteZero carries a two-month supply of bags. Later, Kolling-Perin said terms of the contract prevented Woolwich from immediately starting its own PAYT program should voters opt to leave WasteZero.

Going at it alone would require the town finding another bag vendor and perhaps administering its program with volunteers.

PAYT began on Sept. 1. The program has saved the town $3,200 in its first month according to estimates compiled by WasteZero (and based on information supplied by the town office). The dollar savings reported were based on a 46 percent reduction of the solid waste tonnage and savings Woolwich pays in tipping fees. The town’s recycling rate reportedly doubled during the same period. Numbers for October were not available.

Patrick Wright of Old Stage Road said paying for trash disposal through PAYT was better than raising property taxes. “It’s more fair because it’s my choice,” he said. Wright asked what selectmen would do with the PAYT savings.

King said all the monies saved or earned from PAYT from bag sales would go towards reducing the solid waste line of the budget. Prior to the program’s start, the board cut this budget line over $30,000. “It’s hard to count your chickens with just one month’s worth of numbers, but so far we’ve done better than expected,” King added.

If the voters repeal PAYT, King said the board may need to hold a special town meeting and return money to the solid waste and recycling budget. “It would probably mean taking any money we need (for solid waste disposal) from the un-designated fund balance,” he said.

Whittaker said PAYT might be saving on property taxes but was costing people more.

Others questioned whether PAYT was really reducing the town’s trash volume. Adams asked selectmen if they’d determined how many residents had chosen not to participate in the program. He said some residents are renting dumpsters and sharing the cost of having a private contractor haul their trash away. Selectmen didn’t know.

Over 30 residents attended the hearing that lasted about an hour.