VAN BUREN, Maine – Van Buren is gearing up for its annual town meeting on June 12, where residents can vote on the annual budget. Town Manager Luke Dyer said this year’s budget, which increased by about 4.04 percent over last year, is not expected to result in a mill rate increase.
“The mill rate, although obviously dictated by the budget, is also the result of several other factors including programs like BETE (Business Equipment Tax Exemption), BETR (Business Equipment Tax Reimbursement), homestead exemptions, and several others,” Dyer said on Thursday.
Van Buren reduced its mill rate last year by 0.25 to 20.75. Dyer said the town should be able to maintain the same mill rate this year.
“Last year our tax assessor worked tirelessly with area business owners and our farmers to capture values to enroll in various state programs that help elevate our resident’s tax burden,” he said.
He said the town plans to do the same this year.
“We only commit our taxes in August,” he said, “but I feel confident at this point that we are not expecting an increase in our mill rate.”
The overall budget this year is $3,432,569, a $145,206 increase over last year’s total budget of $3,287,363. This number includes the $515,325 school budget and the town’s $185,703 share of county taxes.
Dyer commended town officials for creating a budget that did not result in any major increases.
“Our town council and budget committee worked very hard over the past few months to create a fiscally responsible budget that we can operate proficiently within,” he said. “Our MSAD #45 school board did an exceptional job with their budget, with a just over $3,000 increase from last year.”
The town will also hold its municipal election on June 11, the day before the town meeting. Residents will be able to vote for multiple officials across four different boards. For the town council, incumbents Paul Nadeau and Anne-Marie Poitras are running for two three-year terms.
For the school board, there are three openings for a three-year term. Incumbent Leslie Beaulieu is on the ballot with new candidate Christina Dolan, and there are three slots for write-in votes.
There is one opening for a three-year term as a Van Buren Light & Power Trustee. Incumbent Ronald Dumond is running against Rodney Soucy Jr.. And for Van Buren Water District, incumbent Daniel Pelletier is running against Ricky Sirois for one three-year term.
The election will be held on June 11 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Community Center on 130 Champlain Street. The town meeting will be held on June 12 at 7 p.m. in the MSAD 24 High School auditorium on 169 Main Street.
