The Calais City Council lamented a “tight budget” at a Thursday workshop, warning that closing the deficit could trigger cuts to city services.
To offset an accrued $544,000 tax bill from Washington County, council members ordered department heads to shave 5 percent from their proposals for the upcoming fiscal year.
Fire Chief Bill Lee, Superintendent of Schools Mary Anne Spearin and other department heads and staff members attended the meeting.
The workshop followed a previous meeting where the school budget sparked a tense debate. Spearin did not attend that discussion.
At a workshop in June, Councilor Michael Sherrard wanted to discuss the school budget appropriation. However, Mayor Marcia Rogers suggested delaying the discussion until Spearin could attend, noting that the superintendent had previously asked if she should be present.
The Calais School Department requested $255,000 more in local funding than its projected share of state Essential Programs and Services funding for the 2026-27 school year, a $94,000 increase over the previous year.
The council met separately with the superintendent later that week to discuss trimming the proposed school budget.
Department heads must now rewrite their proposals to hit the 5 percent reduction target after Sherrard vowed to vote against what he called “an $800,000 tax increase,” which he blamed largely on accrued taxes and public service costs.
Each department, including Public Works, schools and the Fire-Emergency Medical Services, defended its spending requests before the council. Officials highlighted a 13.5 percent year-over-year deficit in the sewer budget, as well as rising public safety wages. The payroll hikes include a 5 percent contract increase for fire and EMS workers and a 2 percent raise for all other staff members.
Faced with a staggering deficit that would require a 20 percent increase in local taxes, councilors asked, “What are our options?”
Calais Finance Director Crystal Gallina summarized the stark reality of the city’s options, saying: “The budget is tight. It’s a status quo budget. As a finance director, I can make changes, but it’s not going to be, ‘Oh, we’re not going to buy pens and pencils.’ I think we’re looking at a service level change, in which case, I’m not qualified to make that decision.”
Ultimately, the decision on what services to cut, if any, is in the hands of councilors.
“I keep reflecting back to when we lost dispatch,” Lee, the fire chief, said. “Be careful what you do here. If we start losing services, we’re in trouble.”
Gallina previously described the total tax accrual of $544,000, which includes a $381,000 share of the 2025 tax anticipation note, or TAN, prepayment. The amount helped cover $8 million in unexpected county debt after voters rejected a bond referendum in November. The county paid the note in December.
