Finance Committee to review Orono Fire Department budget

ORONO — The Town Council’s Finance Committee will review the proposed budgets for the School and Fire departments at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 29, at the Keith Anderson Community House.

Two of the most heated debates within the town this year have focused on the personnel level within the Fire Department and the lack of a contract between the firefighters and the town. The two parties have been negotiating for nearly a year.

The proposed 1990-1991 budget for the Fire Department is $595,562, with Town Manager Bruce A. Locke recommending $595,060. The proposal represents a decrease of $1,319 from last year’s budget.

During this tight budget year, which includes a proposed total municipal budget calling for a tax increase of nearly 25 percent, town officials also will consider three proposals from the Fire Department for increasing manpower there.

The first proposal would add two firefighters at a cost of about $32,000. The second proposal calls for three firefighters at a cost of about $43,000, and the third proposal would provide for five additional firefighters at a cost of about $107,000.

The proposed 1990-1991 budget for the School Department is $4,721,246, a gross increase of 8.41 percent from last year and a net increase of 5.2 percent. Based on a state-estimated valuation of $155 million, the school budget reflects a tax increase of $10.72 per $1,000.

The Finance Committee also will meet several times before the budget is scheduled to be passed June 25, including June 4, when members will review proposed budget items, such as the public library, parks and recreation, the tax-anticipation note, employee benefits, county tax and the general assistance fund.

A public hearing on the budget is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Monday, June 18, in the gymnasium of the Asa Adams Elementary School.