Residents at the town meeting on Saturday approved a budget that's down more than $500,000 from the previous year's spending plan.

The $5.4 million budget recognizes that revenues are expected to be down sharply, said Dana Lee, Poland's town manager. Lee said collections of vehicle excise taxes and earnings on town investments are expected to drop and the town is anticipating that it will get less in revenue sharing from the state in the upcoming budget year.

Spending cuts to meet the lower revenue projections were spread around town departments, Lee said, but public works is likely to feel the pinch most, with one open position going unfilled, overtime reduced and purchases of most materials reduced.

Residents did open their pocketbooks for a couple of items. For instance, they approved providing $66,000 for the town's library, which has a trust fund that generates most of the money for its operation. The town's selectmen had suggested a stipend of $57,000, but voters at the meeting opted for the higher amount recommended by the budget committee.

Voters at the meeting also agreed to provide $5,000 for a conservation commission that will seek grants for open space and forest preservation efforts.

In town elections Friday, voters returned Selectman Erland Torrey to office and elected Larry Moreau to an open selectman's seat.