Lyme ― The Board of Selectmen has become a board of the people.

The three-member board in a unanimous vote earlier this month changed its name to the Board of Selectpeople, effective immediately.

Republican First Selectman David Lahm said the issue became relevant with the appointment of Kristina White to fill a vacancy on the board last summer. That’s when Lahm, then a selectman, replaced outgoing Democratic First Selectman Steve Mattson upon his mid-term retirement.

Lahm said White is only the second woman in town history to serve on the board. Changing the name to better reflect its membership didn’t strike him as earthshaking or groundbreaking.

“It’s just a reflection of the times,” he said.

Lyme may be the first town to use the “selectpeople” designation. Lahm didn’t know of any others, and anecdotal reports from staff members at the Connecticut Conference for Municipalities did not include any mentions of boards of selectpeople.

For Lahm, it doesn’t matter if anyone else is doing it.

“I do what’s right for Lyme,” he said. “I’m not really looking to model our town after other towns.”

Lahm said he will retain the gendered form of his title, Democrat John Kiker will go by selectman and White will go by selectwoman.

“The individuals are still gender specific, but the board, to reflect our true makeup, is now more inclusive,” he said.

White and Kiker could not be reached for comment.

Elsewhere in the state, there are other variations of “board of selectmen” on the books. Seymour’s charter was revised a year ago to turn its Board of Selectmen to Board of Selectpersons. Ridgefield voters will be presented with the choice in November.

Southbury voters in 2019 rejected changes that would have incorporated a select board, first selectperson and selectpersons into the charter. Locally, in Stonington, three women comprise the Board of Selectmen.

Lahm said the board considered using selectpersons instead of selectpeople but rejected the idea. He said selectpeople sounds better to the ear.

“When looking at a group of humans standing over in a corner, I would say ‘look at those people,’ not ‘look at those persons,’ ” he said.

He said they did not consider alternatives like select board.

While towns like Seymour, Ridgefield and Southbury – and a majority of municipalities in the state – operate according to individual town charters that require extensive public input before any changes are made, Lyme doesn’t have its own guiding document. Instead, the town goes by state laws governing municipal authority, town meetings and elections.

State statute still references boards of selectmen, first selectmen and selectmen in its language.

“The state hasn’t caught up yet,” Lahm said. That’s why the change won’t affect any town communications governed by the state, including the ballot for the November election that will continue to include races for first selectman and Board of Selectmen.

A spokesman for the Office of the Secretary of the State could not clarify the implications of changing the name of the Board of Selectman in a town without a charter.

The town meeting form of government in Lyme leaves major decisions to voters while delegating day-to-day decision making to the Board of Selectmen.

Lahm said the name change is an example of an administrative task within the board’s purview. He said holding a public hearing on it would be akin to saying the town has to vote on what size sign they put out in front of the Town Hall.

“There’s certain things we get to do to run the town,” he said.

A website post announcing the change said the new board name will be reflected in as many local communications as possible, including agendas, minutes, calendar listings, annual reports, newsletters, website pages and social media posts.

e.regan@theday.com