MILLINOCKET – Without one public comment, the Town Council on Thursday approved town and school budgets totaling more than $14 million.

The small group of fewer than 30 people, which included school and town officials, did not offer one comment on the municipal or the school budgets. The only comments made were by council members, who made motions, seconded them and then voted.

Town Manager Gene Conlogue said the town’s tax rate of $20.80 per $1,000 of assessed property value may rise slightly. He said a new tax rate would not be available until the town’s new value was determined.

The approved town and school budgets total $14,083,064, which represent an increase of $1,121,754, or 8.65 percent compared with last year.

The municipal budget is $6,725,096. It represents an increase of $847,787 or 14.2 percent compared with last year.

The budget proposal includes two new special tax rebate accounts totaling $1,800,700 for the tax increment financing programs given last year to Great Northern Paper Inc. and Special Minerals Inc. Conlogue said the $1.8 million budgeted for tax rebates would be completely offset on the revenue side of the budget by property taxes.

Without the two special TIF rebate accounts, the municipal budget is $4,924,396, an increase of $48,784, or 1 percent compared with last year. The amount to be raised from local taxes is $2,278,396, an increase of $48,950, or less than 1 percent compared with last year.

Conlogue said the budget included three new positions: a tax assessor-code enforcement officer position; and one full-time and one part-time position for the public works department. He said the new positions will cost about $90,000 for salaries and benefits.

The new tax assessor-code enforcement officer position will be shared with the towns of Medway and Woodville, pending a vote at their respective town meetings.

The municipal budget also includes about $51,000 for pay increases averaging about 3 percent, and it includes about $95,000 to cover the cost of rising health care insurance premiums.

The council approved a school budget of $7,357,968. It represents an increase of $284,967, or 4 percent compared with last year. The amount to be raised from local taxes is $3,830,677, an increase of $137,451 compared with last year.

Superintendent Brent Colbry described the budget as a “maintenance budget.” He said the budget increase was not driven by rising program costs, or additional staff, but was driven by rising fixed costs.

The single largest budget increase is for debt service and employee benefits accounts. Employee benefits are up by $98,716, or 9.7 percent compared with last year. Debt service is up by $33,897, or 8.7 percent compared with last year.