ANSON — Voters at Anson’s annual Town Meeting will weigh in Saturday on whether the town should continue to provide a longtime 2 percent discount on tax payments received 30 days before commitment and a 1 percent discount on taxes paid in full within 30 days.
The meeting is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Carrabec High School. It follows municipal elections, with polls open from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the same location.
The voters’ decision will directly affect the town’s $1.68 million proposed budget, a $30,108 decrease from last year’s budget that does not reflect the cost of the tax discounts. If voters preserve the discounts, they will be asked to approve a proposal to raise an additional $23,000 to cover the lost tax revenue.
The discounts initially were approved to encourage early tax payments, but Town Clerk Tammy Murray said the town rarely receives pre-payments.
“You wanted money coming in at the slow time of the year,” Murray said. “That doesn’t happen.”
Murray said keeping the discounts requires boosting the budget to account for lost revenue. She said it is rare for a town to offer two tax discounts. The town’s selectmen and the advisory board are split on whether to keep the discounts, with the Board of Selectmen recommending that voters let the discounts lapse, while the advisory board prefers to preserve them. The tax rate in Anson is $18.90 for every $1,000 in assessed property valuation.
In addition to the tax question, voters will be asked for up to $30,000 to replace the Town Office roof. They also will be asked to weigh in on whether the town should demolish the house attached to the Town Office. Murray said if voters decide to leave the house standing, the town will use some of the requested money to replace the roof on that building as well but noted that more money will be needed later for maintenance and repairs of the aging structure.
Other warrant articles to be considered include $312,569 requested for administration costs (including $5,680 in selectmen’s wages), $102,599 for the Anson Fire Department, $120,500 for the fire hydrant budget, $27,620 for recreation and $24,900 for streetlights. Voters will also be asked to allow the selectmen to negotiate on behalf of the town to provide fire protection to the town of Embden.
In election voting, incumbent Selectwoman Inez Moody faces a challenge from local businessman James Smith. Grace Carreiro is running unopposed for a seat on the Regional School Unit 74 board of directors. Raymond Moody is seeking another term as Anson-Madison Sanitary District trustee, while Ralph H. Withee seeks to return as Anson & Madison Water District trustee. All positions are three-year terms. Write-in candidates are allowed in addition to those listed on the ballot.
Kate McCormick — 861-9218
kmccormick@centralmaine.com
Twitter: @KateRMcCormick
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