County backs Greenville on taxes

DOVER-FOXCROFT – Greenville officials have the Piscataquis County commissioners in their corner as they press for some county tax relief.

At a joint meeting of the two boards on Tuesday evening, Greenville Town Manager John Simko pushed again for support for a series of measures to help his town reduce its tax burden.

Seeing Greenville’s situation as somewhat unique, the commissioners on Tuesday supported some measures that easily would be adaptable at the county level and a few that would need legislative support.

“I don’t see you’re asking for a special deal,” Commissioner Tom Lizotte said. “You are in an unusual situation as a service center surrounded by Unorganized Territory and getting hammered by taxes because of your rising state valuation.

“If you weren’t in here asking for help, I’d think something was wrong.”

This tourist town’s problem is multifaceted: Its valuation is in excess of $100 million, driven mostly by high waterfront property sales; it is a service center to the Unorganized Territory in the Moosehead Lake region; and it’s geographically isolated so it receives the least benefit from county services, according to town officials.

Lizotte wondered aloud on Tuesday if Greenville residents really understood why their taxes, and in particular, their county tax, is higher than other communities. The county can’t do much about the million-dollar mansions being constructed in Greenville, he said. Even though the county had a “minuscule” tax increase last year, which resulted in decreases for most communities, Greenville’s assessment increased by $39,000 because of those mansions. The town with the highest valuations pay the highest taxes, he said.

Another whammy against the town is the anticipated loss of state revenue sharing funds because of legislative changes, according to Simko.

The town had anticipated $143,013 in revenue sharing funds for 2007 but has been notified that it will receive $7,961 less, the town manager said. The manner in which revenue sharing is calculated now will hurt Greenville because of the town’s ever-expanding state valuation and the town’s relatively constant annual tax assessment and population, Simko said.

Greenville’s issues are not new ones; Simko has tried for more than two years to get some relief. In 2004, the commissioners did agree to fund a portion of the town’s local share for improvements to the Greenville Municipal Airport.

And it appears more help is on the way. The commissioners agreed to work with Greenville officials for legislative changes regarding the Unorganized Territory. They will seek permission to increase the amount the county receives for the administration of services; to allow participation in Tax Increment Financing programs, which fund regional infrastructure such as the Junction Wharf; and to review state revenue sharing for possible reform.

At the county level, the commissioners agreed to include an administrative fee and hydrant rental share in Greenville’s contract to provide fire protection to the Unorganized Territory; to include Greenville projects in the next countywide economic development bond; and to include a percentage of the costs for the reconstruction of the Junction Wharf in the Unorganized Territory budget.

‘We’re open to that. Anyone can grasp the fairness of spreading that around,” Lizotte said of the latter request.

The commissioners also will contribute an annual fee for election services provided to those residents in surrounding Unorganized Territory funded through the UT budget. The county already compensates Millinocket and Brownville for that service.

Regarding police coverage, the commissioners were favorable of holding a special meeting in which town managers, police chiefs and commissioners could brainstorm ways to improve police coverage.

That discussion will begin at the Sept. 19 meeting of the commissioners and could lead to another meeting later.