Stonington ― After years of discussion, the newly elected Board of Selectman in its first meeting Wednesday, seemed poised to begin the process of revising the town charter.

If approved at the board’s Jan. 10 meeting, the process of appointing members to a charter revision committee could begin in late January, with a target date of mid-summer for finalizing a list of proposed revisions. This would allow the changes to go before voters next November.

Selectman Ben Tamsky said he was not prepared to vote in favor of beginning charter revision, explaining he would like more time to gather information. He added the timeline was far too short for such a significant move.

He did agree to taking preliminary steps, however, and the board voted unanimously to draft a resolution creating a charter revision commission and beginning the revision process, which would only go into effect if approved at the board’s Jan. 10 meeting.

The timeline, although tight, would allow the town to vote on the changes during the presidential election, which has a much higher turnout than special elections. State law requires a simple majority to pass a charter revision on Election Day, but a 15% margin in a special election.

First Selectman Danielle Chesebrough and Selectwoman Deborah Downie said the move has been discussed throughout their two prior terms and by former Boards of Selectmen as well.

The board discussed items for potential revision including making the tax collector and town clerk, currently elected offices, hired positions due to the increasing complexity of the job requirements and training needed, lengthening the Board of Selectmen terms from two to four years and making charter language gender neutral among other changes.

Downie noted that Chesebrough uses the title of first selectman because the charter does not allow her to be called the first selectwoman.

Chesebrough explained that two-year terms for the first selectmen can narrow the field of potential candidates because many people may not be able to leave a career for two years and then potentially have to find a new job within a few weeks if not reelected.

Additionally, she said that elected members have a very short window to get things done before a new campaign season begins again, which can cause town projects to stagnate. Though a project may be supported by the current selectmen, there is no guarantee that the succeeding first selectman or the board will continue the project.

By lengthening terms to four years, there should be more opportunities for a broader and more diverse pool of candidates and there is more time to accomplish larger projects.

William Sternberg, elected to the Board of Finance in November, used the public comment portion of the meeting to advise caution. He said that the benefit of having an elected town clerk and tax collector is that the positions are completely independent of town government. He also said there are risks to opening up the charter, because the revision commission can recommend changes other than those suggested by the Board of Selectmen.

“Don’t break what’s working,” he said after the meeting.

The last revision of the town charter was approved by voters in 2015. The changes included expanding the finance board from six to seven members and reducing members’ terms from six to four years, increasing the term of the town clerk and tax collector from two years to four and limiting school board and finance board members to three consecutive terms with one term off before being eligible to serve again among other changes.