Penobscot County budget panel orders $1 million cut, asks commissioners to identify where to find savings

The Penobscot County Budget Committee on Dec. 12 voted to recommend a $1,000,000 reduction to the proposed 2026 expenditure budget and to send that amended package to the county commissioners for final action. The motion, as amended, exempted Department 10 (Registry of Deeds) from reconsideration and added specified revenue items to offset part of the cut.

Committee members said the county faces a structural shortfall driven largely by jail-related costs that the state has not fully funded. "That's where the hole is," said former county administrator Mr. Collins, testifying to the committee about long-standing shifts of costs from the state to counties. Collins urged legislative action in Augusta to address the gap.

The committee’s action combined several elements: a direction to reduce the overall proposed budget by $1,000,000; inclusion of additional projected revenues (the substitute motion specified $127,800 from building-related fees and an added $25,000 in probate revenue); and a…