Voters at Marion’s Special Town Meeting will consider a few proposals on Monday, Oct. 28, but two are expected to generate a lively discussion.

As part of the eight-article warrant, voters will be asked to approve a $349,108 request from Fire Chief Thomas Joyce to hire EMTs and paramedics to staff the ambulance service.

Voters will also hear competing pitches for and against a bylaw that would govern the installation of commercial solar farms in residential areas.

The meeting begins at 6:45 p.m. in the Sippican School auditorium.

Joyce went before the Board of Selectmen in June and asked to hire more staff. The request came as the department operated with its advanced life support license in jeopardy. If approved the money would be transferred from the town’s general fund.

On Tuesday, Joyce faced questions from finance committee members who were skeptical about the proposal. Committee members met jointly with Selectmen, Town Administrator Paul Dawson, Joyce, and the department’s only full time firefighter and paramedic, Ryan Miller, at a specially scheduled meeting.

The finance committee and Selectmen provide a recommendation to voters at Fall Town Meeting on warrant articles. Finance Committee Chair Alan Minard pressed Joyce on how he calculated the number of ambulance calls the department responds to each year.

“I’m not going to stand up in front of the town based on a number that’s pulled out of the air, with no verifiable supporting documents,” Minard said. He and other committee members took issue with information provided by Dawson.

Last year, the fire department responded to 849 total calls. Of those calls, about 600 were for ambulance service, he said.

To offset the additional expenses, Dawson said more EMTs will allow the department to respond to more calls. The department earns money when insurance companies are billed for emergency service.

Minard said all of those calls shouldn’t be considered because not every one resulted in a patient being billed.

He said non-emergency calls, such as for training or inspections, were included, which inflates the projected revenues. “The numbers don’t feel right based on the research I’ve done,” Minard said.

Joyce agreed to find the number of ambulance runs that resulted in a patient being billed. Minard noted the ambulance calls would give the committee a better idea of how much money might be generated.

According to Joyce, new guidelines made it difficult for the department to meet state mandated standards without the additional staff, which prompted the request.

The state’s Office of Emergency Management has granted a series of extensions to the department to keep its advanced life support license.

Previously, the ambulance service relied on mostly on-call, volunteer staff. Joyce said hiring staff to provide round-the-clock service is essential.

If approved, the money would pay to have one paramedic and one EMT at the station at all times. For backup, one paramedic and one EMT would be paid a stipend to be on call at the same time. If needed the back-up staff would be paid an hourly rate.

While supporters of the second controversial article hope it leads to more solar panels in town, the only thing it has been generating over the summer is discourse.

The bylaw is a joint effort between the Energy Management Committee and the Marion Planning Board. The committee and the planning board are in agreement over regulations on solar arrays for private residences.

A section of the bylaw governing commercial solar farms has divided both boards. The planning board favors removing the solar farm language through a motion at the town meeting.

Energy committee members contend bylaw language gives the board broad authority to deny a solar farm if necessary.