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Ellsworth council votes to exceed revenue-neutral rate after heated public hearing
Summary
After extensive public comment about deferred water and sewer maintenance, the Ellsworth City Council passed Resolution 2024-19 to exceed the revenue-neutral rate while directing staff to seek a lower final levy (council signaled a 90-mill target). Residents pressed for clearer dollar figures for the proposed increases.
Ellsworth — The Ellsworth City Council voted Sept. 9 to adopt Resolution 2024-19 to exceed the state-calculated revenue-neutral tax rate after a public hearing in which residents pressed the council for clearer accounting of how proposed increases would be spent.
The vote followed more than an hour of public comment and council discussion focused on long-deferred water and sewer work. Council members said the 94-mill figure on the mailed notice represents a ceiling, not a final decision, and that approving the resolution allows the council to pursue a final budget that may land below that ceiling.
Why it matters: residents and councilors framed the choice as a trade-off between raising taxes and reinvesting in aging infrastructure. A city official told the meeting there is a roughly $10,200,000 water/sewer capital project pending; staff said a $2,600,000 reduction in expected revenue leaves approximately $7,600,000 still to finance while the city’s general fund is roughly $3,600,000 and its water/sewer budget about $2,000,000.
What happened at the hearing: multiple residents questioned whether a cited 38% figure reflected real price increases or bookkeeping changes tied to prior transfers from the water/sewer enterprise fund to the general fund. One resident said, “You keep raising our taxes and raising our taxes,” and another asked for a clear dollar amount representing the percentage change. City staff explained that years of transferring water/sewer revenue into the general fund had left departments underfunded and that stopping those transfers exposed the shortfalls.
Council discussion centered on whether to accept a staged increase or the full ceiling. Council members said they preferred to avoid layoffs and to seek alternatives such as leasing equipment and phased increases. The mayor and staff agreed to work toward a lower target than the notice’s ceiling; multiple speakers said staff would attempt to produce a 90-mill scenario for council review before the Oct. 1 filing deadline.
Action and next steps: Council President Coates moved to pass Resolution 2024-19 to exceed the revenue-neutral rate; the motion was seconded and carried. Council members and staff emphasized that the vote does not adopt the final budget; they asked staff to return updated budget scenarios (including a 90-mill target) for further consideration before any final adoption.
Budget details and staff clarifications: staff acknowledged that deferred maintenance has driven up project prices (staff said several projects have doubled in price since they were first estimated). The city also proposed a 4% wage increase for employees in the draft budget; council discussed that pay step as a tool for retention and a trade-off against deeper cuts.
The council adjourned the public hearing portion of the evening and continued the regular meeting, leaving the final levy decision pending additional staff work and at least one more council meeting prior to the statutory filing deadline.
