By Kelly Morgan,Staff Writer

PARIS – The Oxford County budget process is under way and nine individuals have been selected to make up the annual budget committee.

County Administrative Assistant Carole Mahoney said Tuesday that a public hearing on the budget is scheduled Oct. 12. Department heads have submitted their budget requests for the coming year, but Mahoney said they are still being combined into one package. She said she could not comment on where any significant increases may be expected for 2006 because she has not yet reviewed each department’s requests.

Mahoney said she did not know whether the budget requests would be discussed by the commissioners at their next regularly scheduled meeting Sept. 20.

Each year the commissioners hold separate caucuses to select representatives who will serve their districts on the budget committee. The commissioners and budget committee members then hold a joint public hearing on the budget.

Afterward, the commissioners review and propose changes to the department budget requests. The budget committee then reviews the initial requests and proposed changes before recommending a complete budget.

The commissioners will be asked to approve the budget committee’s recommendation before the start of the county’s new fiscal year Jan. 1.

This year, Gregory Buccina of Rumford, Lisa Cummings of Canton, Jim Dutton of Fryeburg, Robert Heard of Porter, Fred Henderson of Greenwood, Lee Holman of Hartford, Russell Newcomb of Norway, Dennis Sanborn of Oxford and Richard Deans of Hebron will serve on the budget committee.

Copy the Story Link