NORWAY – Property tax relief could come without the aid of the Palesky tax cap, or at least that’s what hundreds of municipal government officials across the state hope to prove.

Reacting to a “call to arms” out of Brewer, local officials from Norway to the seacoast are signing a resolution promising that local governments will reduce property taxes. That’s even without the Palesky referendum, which voters will decide on in November.

“The purpose of the resolves is to demonstrate to voters in each community that there is an ironclad commitment to property tax relief,” Steve Bost, Brewer’s city manager, said Wednesday.

Many officials fear the Palesky initiative, which would cap property taxes at $10 per $1,000 of assessment, based on values in 1996-97. Town officials say it would lead to severe budget cuts and service reductions and loss of staff.

“Most of the people I’ve heard from are in favor of the Palesky issue,” Norway Selectman Leslie Flanders said Monday. If Palesky passes, he said, Norway will have nothing in the bank.

Alternatives

On June 16, the Brewer City Council adopted a resolution to dedicate at least 90 percent of additional state funding expected because of Question 1 “directly to the reduction of the mill rate for its citizens and businesses.”

Passed by voters in June, Question 1 calls for the state to take responsibility for a full 55 percent of all education spending, up from its current level of 45 percent. While no date has been set for this shift, local governments are expected to receive a windfall as part of the package.

Naysayers have claimed this additional cash will just be rolled into city coffers. But Bost and the Brewer City Council claim otherwise. They hope others will, too.

On June 16, a “call to arms” was sent statewide from Brewer Mayor Michael Celli’s office.

“We’ve probably sent 450 letters,” Bost said Wednesday. So far, about 300 communities have responded.

Oxford towns join in

Because Norway is part of SAD 17, any local returns from Question 1 are in the hands of the district and the voters, who pass the district budget by referendum each year.

On July 16, the Norway Board of Selectmen decided to forgo the Brewer resolution, instead writing to schools Superintendent Mark Eastman. A draft letter approved by the board appealed to the school district not to spend any savings as a result of Question 1, because to do so “would make a case for Palesky.”

If Palesky passes, the draft letters state, “In Norway’s case it appears that there would be no property tax left to run the town after we pay the school tax.”

Eastman said Question 1 will be discussed by the SAD 17 board. “It’s worthy of some discussion because there’s some confusion about how it applies to school districts as opposed to single municipalities.”

In the meantime, Oxford Town Manager Mike Huston said the Board of Selectmen there passed a version of the Brewer resolution on July 16.

The voters need to know “we’re not going to run out and spend this money willy-nilly,” he said.

Rumford Town Manager Robert Welch agreed.

“If Palesky passes, the towns aren’t going to have any money. Period,” he said.

But Carol Palesky, who worked with the Maine Taxpayers Action Network to collect signatures to get her tax cap initiative on the November ballot, is unimpressed by the efforts of communities like Brewer.

In her view, any resolution passed by a city council or board of selectmen stands only as long as the enacting body. In other words, as members of the Brewer City Council come and go, so will support for the resolution.

“A resolution is not a law, so that will be outdated totally,” Palesky said, “and that’s important for people in your area to know.”