Tag: taxes

High School Public Budget Meeting Gives Voters a Chance To Have a Say Not an "out of our hands" situation
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High School Public Budget Meeting Gives Voters a Chance To Have a Say

Not an “out of our hands” situation Shaun Farrar Mar 29, 2025 Share The Bar Harbor Story is generously sponsored by Side Street Cafe. BAR HARBOR—Local school budgets make up a large portion of the town budgets for all four towns on Mount Desert Island. Every year, these budgets are proposed and then scrutinized by warrant committees and select boards/councils before being approved to be put … Continue reading High School Public Budget Meeting Gives Voters a Chance To Have a Say

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Public Hearing Shows Divided State Opinions About Rep. Friedmann's Local Options Lodging Tax Augusta hearing held before Taxation Committee, Wednesday
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Public Hearing Shows Divided State Opinions About Rep. Friedmann’s Local Options Lodging Tax

Augusta hearing held before Taxation Committee, Wednesday Carrie Jones Mar 13, 2025 Share AUGUSTA—The Maine Taxation Committee listened to public testimony for two closely related bills on local option taxes, March 12. The bills were presented by Rep. Gary Friedmann (D-Bar Harbor) and Rep. Charles Skold (D-Portland). Testimony was meant to encourage the committee to recommend or not recommend the bills’ passage. Both bills would … Continue reading Public Hearing Shows Divided State Opinions About Rep. Friedmann’s Local Options Lodging Tax

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Warrant Committee Weighs Budget Recommendations, Slightly Divided on YMCA Funding School Subsidy Should Be Better Than Expected
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Warrant Committee Weighs Budget Recommendations, Slightly Divided on YMCA Funding

School Subsidy Should Be Better Than Expected Carrie Jones Feb 11, 2025 Share The Bar Harbor Story is generously sponsored by Paradis Ace Hardware. BAR HARBOR—The entire warrant committee went over the recommendations from the public works and public safety subcommittees, two of its four subcommittees, February 10. Each subcommittee looks at revenue, expenses, and capital projects. Subcommittee chairs “will either recommend adoption of portions of … Continue reading Warrant Committee Weighs Budget Recommendations, Slightly Divided on YMCA Funding

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Could a Local Options Tax Help MDI? State Rep Makes the Case to Some Chamber Members
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Could a Local Options Tax Help MDI?

State Rep Makes the Case to Some Chamber Members Carrie Jones Feb 06, 2025 Share The Bar Harbor Story is generously sponsored by Andy’s Home Improvement Inc. BAR HARBOR—Recently elected State Representative Gary Friedmann met with interested members of the Chamber of Commerce on Monday morning, January 27 to talk about the bill he has submitted and that if enacted would allow municipalities to add a … Continue reading Could a Local Options Tax Help MDI?

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Bar Harbor Manager Suggests Using Parking Revenue to Decrease Potential Tax Increase to 6.7%
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Bar Harbor Manager Suggests Using Parking Revenue to Decrease Potential Tax Increase to 6.7%

Carrie Jones Jan 24, 2025 Share The Bar Harbor Story is generously sponsored by Acadia Shops. BAR HARBOR—In a meeting that lasted just over an hour, Town Manager James Smith presented the budget to town councilors and warrant committee members, January 23, in a high-level overview. It’s a budget that he hopes will help the town deal with bond payments on school and infrastructure as well … Continue reading Bar Harbor Manager Suggests Using Parking Revenue to Decrease Potential Tax Increase to 6.7%

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State's Preliminary Revaluations Put Trenton at $591 million Cheer donation sent back, board also talks about school reorganization
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State’s Preliminary Revaluations Put Trenton at $591 million

Cheer donation sent back, board also talks about school reorganization Carrie Jones Oct 03, 2024 Share TRENTON—The state of Maine has preliminarily decided that Trenton is worth approximately $591,950,000. That’s up by approximately $163 million from 2023 and $87 million from last year’s assessment. Trenton may be heading toward a revaluation in its property after receiving a preliminary revaluation report from the state. The town has … Continue reading State’s Preliminary Revaluations Put Trenton at $591 million

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Southwest Harbor Assessor Explains Town's Revaluation Charlotte Gill Appointed to Planning Board, Working Waterfront Discussed, Police Chief Asks for Sgt. Not Lt.
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Southwest Harbor Assessor Explains Town’s Revaluation

Charlotte Gill Appointed to Planning Board, Working Waterfront Discussed, Police Chief Asks for Sgt. Not Lt. Carrie Jones Sep 13, 2024 SOUTHWEST HARBOR—It isn’t the easiest of topics, but at the Southwest Harbor Select Board meeting this week, Southwest Harbor Assessor Matt Caldwell calmly explained just how and why property values had to be reassessed in Southwest Harbor. It comes down to the state and … Continue reading Southwest Harbor Assessor Explains Town’s Revaluation

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Radical Shift in Real Estate Market Big Player in Mount Desert Tax Bills

CARRIE JONES JUL 16, 2024 MOUNT DESERT—When it comes to property taxes, the Town of Mount Desert, like many communities in Maine are stuck between a rock and a hard, expensive place. And many of the factors, the Selectboard members heard Tuesday night, are beyond the board’s control. In a July 4 letter to the Selectboard members, Town Manager Durlin Lunt explained that “tax bills … Continue reading Radical Shift in Real Estate Market Big Player in Mount Desert Tax Bills

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Just “Burying Money in the Backyard”

As tax rates and property values go up Bar Harbor Council talks alternative revenues & tax predictability, plus primary results. CARRIE JONES MAR 6, 2024 Share BAR HARBOR—With a giant marker and a lot of white paper taped to the wall, Council Chair Valerie Peacock used her teaching skills Monday night during a workshop with the Town Council about alternative revenue and tax stabilization. Peacock … Continue reading Just “Burying Money in the Backyard”

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Town Manager Hopes to be Arbitrator in Town Budget Process

Bar Harbor’s proposed municipal budget shows 8.9% increase CARRIE JONES JAN 24, 2024 Share BAR HARBOR—Employee benefits, solid waste, and multiple bonds have combined to increase the proposed Bar Harbor municipal budget’s general fund’s overall spending for municipal operations by 8.9%, an increase of $1,141,909. “This has been a difficult budget to construct, as it is the first budget to assume the debt service costs … Continue reading Town Manager Hopes to be Arbitrator in Town Budget Process

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