China budget committee makes final recommendations

by Mary Grow

Despite the draft 2025-26 China budget and the warrant for the June 10 annual town business meeting changing as they met, China Budget Committee members made their final recommendations at their April 2 meeting – they thought.

The draft warrant as of the end of the meeting had 32 articles. Twenty-three dealt with money matters and needed a budget committee recommendation.

The six budget committee members present voted in favor of all but one article, mostly by unanimous votes. The one dissenting vote was cast by committee chairman Brent Chesley on Art. 6, asking for $25,000 for social services expenses.

In the proposed 2025-26 social services budget, the largest item is general assistance, with $8,000 requested. The rest of the listed recipients are nine out-of-town social service agencies voters traditionally help support, plus one new one, the Winslow Community Food Cupboard.

The organization is a food bank that, supporters told budget committee members at earlier meetings, assists the China Food Pantry. The recommended donation is $500, half the amount requested. (For more information on the Winslow Community Cupboard, please see the April 3 issue of The Town Line, p. 1.)

The warrant article that budget committee members voted not to support funded China’s TIF (Tax Increment Financing) account. As rewritten on the spot by Chesley and Town Manager Rebecca Hapgood, it asks voters to appropriate $215,000 in new TIF money for next year and to transfer $555,000 previously appropriated to the China Broadband Committee for 2025-26.

Broadband committee members hope to use the money for a proposed expansion of broadband service in town, working with Direct Communications’ Maine subsidiary, Unity-based Unitel. Unitel has repeatedly applied for grants to fund the project and has not yet been successful, but has not given up (see the Feb. 13 issue of The Town Line, p. 3, for a fuller explanation).

Budget committee member Michael Sullivan argued that the original project with Unitel had two parts: running a line through China to connect Unity with Palermo, a member of the Waldo Broadband Group; plus extending service to unserved and underserved parts of China. Now, he said, the second part of the project has been dropped: it is no longer what voters expected when they approved TIF funds in the past.

Jane Robertson voted to support TIF funding; Kevin Maroon, Taryn Hotham, Jo Orlando and Sullivan voted against; and Chesley abstained.

Hapgood said later in the week that she and the town attorney agreed that the budget committee had, probably unintentionally, recommended shutting down the entire TIF program next year. Two committee members agreed and requested a special meeting, which Hapgood scheduled for Monday, May 7, before that evening’s select board meeting.

Budget committee members began their April 2 meeting with a review of the select board’s reactions to March 17 budget committee votes. At their March 24 meeting, select board members accepted four budget committee recommendations on minor expenses (see the March 27 issue of The Town Line, p, 3).

Select board members had first recommended 3.5 percent cost of living increase for town employees. Budget committee members on March 17 recommended a 2.5 percent increase. On March 24, select board members agreed on a 3.25 percent increase.

Budget committee members renewed discussion April 2, though Chesley commented on the awkwardness of airing the topic in a public meeting. Everyone agreed they did not intend to criticize town employees; the issue was finances, not personnel. Orlando said residents with whom she discussed the budget praised town staff.

Town employees’ salaries and benefits are part of several budget accounts, notably administration, public works and the transfer station. Budget committee members recommended voters approve the select board’s recommended amounts for the relevant articles.

China’s annual town business meeting will be by written ballot again this year, as it has been since the pandemic, despite some residents’ annual requests for a return to an open meeting. A majority of select board members prefer the all-day written ballot because many more people vote than at an open meeting.

The June 10 voting will be in the former portable classroom behind the town office on Lakeview Drive. Polls will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.