Nearly every resident of Houlton likely experienced a feeling of “sticker shock” last week when they went to the mailbox and saw their tax bills waiting for them.
The fact that taxes were going up, however, should not have come to a surprise, as the rate hike has been a topic of much discussion by members of the Houlton Town Council for several months now.
For those struggling to pay their taxes on a yearly basis, the town offers the Tax Club. This program splits a person’s tax bill into 12 monthly installments, making the impact a bit easier on their wallets. Payments are made January to December of each year and can be made in person at the town office or by mail.
No interest is charged for those enrolled in the program and it also helps out the town by providing cash flow throughout the year. Applications for this program can be found at the town office or online at www.houlton-maine.com.
Expressing outrage and pointing fingers after the fact is easy to do. It happens every year. It’s part of the reason why many individuals choose not to seek election to the council, and why some only serve a single, three-year term.
Councilors, and to an even greater extent the employees at the town office, are the ones who bear the brunt of people’s anger and frustrations when it’s tax time. Surprisingly, workers in the town office said Monday that the number of complaints this year was no different than any other year.
A growing trend seems to be expressing concerns on social media sites. For some, it is much easier to sit behind a computer screen and complain than it is to speak to a live person.
The bottom line is, if residents are concerned that taxes are too high, the time to voice that concern is before budgets are finalized. The town starts putting its spending plan together in November with meetings of the Board of Budget Review. The council typically reviews that committee’s recommendations in early January before approving the plan.
RSU 29 also welcomes public participation in its budget preparation. Numerous committee meetings are typically held starting in April before public hearings and votes take place in May.
Sadly, public participation at these meetings is often low to non-existent. Some simply are not comfortable standing in front of a group of people to ask questions. Others likely feel “what’s the point?” because things rarely seem to change in their opinions.
That thinking seems to carry over when it comes time to vote on budgets at the polls. Turnout for the RSU 29 school budget was abysmal with slightly more than 4 percent of registered voters casting ballots. It’s awfully hard to justify people’s complaints when they don’t bother to vote.
Joseph Cyr is a staff writer for the Houlton Pioneer Times. He can be reached at pioneertimes@nepublish.com or 532-2281.
