If the budget proposal passes as is, how much would taxes rise, budget committee member Marty Fox asked Town Manager Dennis Simmons the first night of talks, Feb. 15. 

Simmons did not yet know. Presenting the proposal at the town office and over Zoom and YouTube, he told the committee and selectmen a $457,000 increase would raise the rate by about $1.25 per thousand dollars of assessed valuation, but there are valuations to be done and some of Maine Yankee’s tax could be lost if Maine Department of Environmental Protection gives the company a classification it is seeking, he said.

In 2022, Maine Yankee paid $738,558.20, spokesman Eric Howes said in a recent email interview with Wiscasset Newspaper.

To impact the next tax year, the state would need to decide by April 1, Simmons said on a question from budget committee member Kim Dolce. The town is negotiating with the company, Simmons added.

Also, union contracts were not yet set, the 6.46% county tax hike is an estimate and, Simmons said, the town’s fund balance is getting healthier – $1,772,000 in the 2021 audit – but the town should keep enough for about two months’ bills in a cash flow crunch, he said.

If taxes rise, municipal costs may not be the only reason. Simmons told the panels the school department may, for the first time in years, seek more from property taxes, maybe around half a million dollars more. He said Interim Superintendent of Schools Robert “Bob” England Jr. is “fairly comfortable that it could be in that range.” In a phone interview Feb. 16, England confirmed giving that estimate and noted the department has union contracts to reach.

An economic development director could work to broaden Wiscasset’s tax base to fund services and ease homeowners’ burden, Simmons suggested in his budget proposal. He wrote, proposing new jobs is “generally undesirable,” but growing the tax base will take “a concerted effort to assist existing businesses to expand and to attract new business.”

Simmons proposes a $66,560 director’s salary and cutting funding for Lincoln County Regional Planning Commission’s contracted services in half, to $25,000. Having LCRPC keep helping committees would free the economic development director from that work that took up past planners’ time, participants observed. Several expressed interest in Simmons’ proposal. “It’s well worth the money,” Selectman William “Bill” Maloney said. “We definitely need more taxpayers.” Some wondered if the pay is enough to get someone who could produce results. 

“I think this (job) is something you guys really should think about and discuss,” Simmons said. He expects the Tax Increment Financing (TIF) fund will at least partly offset costs.

In other budget talks, Simmons said higher energy costs and the need to keep wages closer to what people could make elsewhere are driving departments’ increases. Fortunately, people like working for Wiscasset, with its great people and great directors, he said.

His written proposal noted challenges residents, taxpayers and businesses now face: “Many businesses are still struggling with the long-term impacts of the pandemic, including a drastically altered workforce, continuing disruptions in the supply chains and disruptions in production processes. Individuals and families are confronted with skyrocketing prices for housing, food, energy and many essential products and services.

“The challenge we face is to continue to provide exceptional services within the confines of a restrictive and conservative budget. This budget seeks to continue to improve the quality of life within our community and to be good stewards with taxpayer dollars. I look forward to a robust discussion.”

Budget committee member Tom Joyce praised Simmons’ document, which included charts and narratives. “This is very well done and really, really helpful.”

March 8, the panels can talk with department heads and review capital requests, Selectmen’s Chair Sarah Whitfield said.