Town officials in Nobleboro expect taxes to be down this year.
According to information provided by Dick Spear, chairman of the Nobleboro Board of Selectmen, the proposed town budget is $748,752: a $37,351 (5.3 percent) increase over last year’s budget.
However, the local funds in this year’s school budget are expected to be significantly lower than last year.
The increase to the town budget is primarily to two areas, Spear said. The proposed fire department budget is up $5595, for a total request of $62,000; the proposed budget for road maintenance and paving is up $31,000, for a total request of $171,000.
The increase to the fire department is “basically a small increase across the board,” Spear said. Each expense for the department – particularly training and equipment – is up slightly because the department has more new members this year than in years past, Spear said.
The increase to the paving budget will allow the town to cover more roads in the coming year than they have in last few years, Spear said.
With the school budget down, the budget committee and other town officials felt “we could afford it this year,” Spear said. “They wanted to do it anyhow, so this was a good year.”
The town’s budget committee approved the proposed budget on Jan. 23. The committee expressed no concerns about the proposed budget, Spear said.
“We’re able to do just about everything and the tax rate will likely go down,” Spear said.
The increase to the town budget is offset by a significant decrease to the town’s contribution to the school budget. Based on the school district’s preliminary estimates, if voters approve the proposed school budget, the town’s contribution will be down $116,576, for a total contribution of $2,337,992.
Combining the town budget and the school contribution, if the proposed budgets are passed, Nobleboro taxpayers should expect to see a $60,353 (2.5 percent) decrease to the amount raised from taxes this year.
