One of the most common debates during town meetings, as well as one of the trickiest, involves deciding what is “a need” and what is “a want” when it comes to government spending.

There was no better demonstration of this trickiness Saturday than at Henniker’s town meeting, where an item about paying for youth sports – the sort of thing that strikes some people as a legitimate “need” and some people as a discretionary “want” – ended up as a 57-57 tie.

The proposed amendment, which under town meeting rules failed as a tie vote, would have added $11,100 to the town’s athletic line item, which supports such things as T-Ball and youth soccer. The money would have replaced the amount trimmed by the select board as part of cost-cutting measures, bringing the line item back up to last year’s figure of $32,645.

This wasn’t the most debated item during the 3 1/2-hour meeting, however. That honor went to a petitioned warrant article to allow Class C fireworks – the smallest category – in town from 10 a.m. and 11 p.m, with an extra hour and a half on New Year’s Eve. 

The article failed badly on a show-of-hands vote after almost an hour’s discussion.

According to testimony, Henniker is one of just 26 communities in the state to completely ban fireworks. Large displays such as those held by New England College and Pats Peak ski area can go forward if they get a permit from the fire department. All the towns adjoining Henniker allow home fireworks.

Keith DeMoura proposed the article because, he said, people are setting off fireworks anyway and it would give town authorities more control.  During the discussion several speakers said they were surprised to learn that fireworks were banned in Henniker because they heard them go often so often.

DeMoura noted that his article would have limited permission to owners of the property, meaning that NEC students couldn’t shoot fireworks off, and imposed distance requirements which would have kept them illegal in the downtown area. That didn’t allay concerns from a number of speakers about the effect of firework noise on neighbors, domestic animals, pets and people.

Nisa Marks told the meeting two concussions have left her vulnerable. The pain, she said, “gets re-triggered by gunshot-like noise, especially fireworks.”

Marks said she prepares herself each 4th of July and New Year’s Eve by closing windows and getting ready for the noise. “People are having fun. Those are holidays, I understand,” she said. “It’s predictable, which helps me prepare. But it’s still a tough night.”

She feared the effect of allowing fireworks at any time. Two other speakers expressed similar concern for combat veterans with PTSD.

In other items:

■Voters approved, 80-40, a $1.075 million bond to buy a new pump truck after some discussion of whether it was necessary. It will take up to 30 months for it to be built and delivered.

■Voters approved issuing $500,000 in bonds to pay for lead abatement projects in the Cogswell Spring Water Works system, which has 580 meters in town. Federal grants are supposed to pay for 71% of that and the rest will be covered by ratepayers.

■V otes approved a $6.89 million operating budget. The only change made during the meeting was adding $2,500 to pay for flowers in downtown planters, a move that supporters said helps to attract new business as well as people.

■All other warrant articles were passed without change. The approval of all items means the estimated town portion of the tax rate could rise from $6.96 to $7.55 per $1,000 of assessed value, adding $236 to the tax bill of a $400,000 home.