Ahead of the 2017-18 budget draft, Wiscasset’s budget committee on Dec. 8 reopened some of the panel’s past talking points and touched on some new ones to consider raising in upcoming deliberations.

With four members present, the meeting fell short of a quorum, but the members talked nearly an hour to continue to prep for budget season. Then they mulled a possible schedule change for the committee’s monthly meetings, to help get a quorum among the nine members. The panel has been meeting the second Thursday of the month. No decision was reached; the members wanted to check with the others first to see what works best for them.

As in recent years, members questioned the need for the current level of supervision among town departments. Chairman Bob Blagden and member Bryan Buck said consolidation can save money and make for easier management of employees. “Workers need to be flexible in moving around,” Buck said. Blagden said he remembered when the sewer treatment plant, transfer station and highway department shared one director.

Members also expressed an interest in having the town look at tapping the county’s recycling services; and Buck, who also serves on the Wiscasset Municipal Airport Advisory Committee, suggested reviewing the use of equipment at the town-owned airport.

As one example, the airport grass doesn’t have to be kept as short as it is, Buck added. Keeping it to the height other airports do could cut mowing costs in half, he said.

Members reviewed an email that listed Town Manager Marian Anderson’s responses to questions from the committee. Some of the questions centered on other towns’ service contracts with Wiscasset. Anderson replied that Edgecomb pays for the hours received for code enforcement; towns’ populations are used to calculate their cost to use the transfer station; and for emergency medical services, Wiscasset receives a flat, yearly fee plus revenue the services generate.

Also in response to a committee question, Anderson stated the county planning office supports projects, but does not staff local boards or committees or do local permitting.

Selectmen and the budget committee will hear department heads’ capital requests on Saturday, Jan. 28, Anderson said Monday.