MEXICO – Only a handful of residents, other than the Budget Committee, turned out Wednesday night for a public hearing on the town budget.

Voters decided last November to change the method of adopting a budget from an open town meeting to a referendum at the polls.

Residents will act on 18 articles by secret ballot June 12.

Neighboring Rumford will be doing the same thing for the first time, also on June 12. They will have more than 50 warrant articles to decide.

Clayton Weeks believes Mexico’s ballot shouldn’t present voters with large blocks of similar items.

“I don’t think this is what people wanted. They wanted more control,” he said, adding that he wants an amendment to the town’s ordinance that would allow a greater number of articles.

Board Chairwoman Barbara Laramee said town officials plan to survey voters on election day to learn whether they want to maintain the level of services, decrease them, or increase them.

“This will give us a ground level to start. It will depend on that survey as far as changing the ballot,” she said, adding that people she has spoken with like the small number of articles.

Budget Committee member Byron Ouellette agreed with Weeks.

“The articles are grouped together too much, especially public safety,” he said.

But fire Chief Gary Wentzell said he, and other department heads, were concerned with the groupings.

“We have not been asked questions to explain anything. I’m afraid they may speak at the polls without knowing. At town meetings, people always asked questions,” he said.

Chris Brennick said the newsletter the town office sent to Mexico residents contained some valuable information, but not enough.

“We need open discussion. Questions breed questions. This is not as adequate as the old system,” he said.

Former Selectwoman Monique Aniel said Mexico has almost the highest tax rate in the state, at $23.50 per $1,000 valuation, and with the 2007-2008 municipal and school budgets, that rate would go to around $27.

She said the ballot should state how much more than the state allowed tax cap would have to be raised to meet the municipal budget and the number of dollars per thousand that would represent.

“We have to be creative (with the budget), or we’ll have a natural $1.50 increase every year. The average salary in Oxford County is $26,000. That’s less than it was,” she said.

Residents will be voting on a selectmen’s recommendation of $2,340,526 municipal budget, up 7.6 percent from this year’s figure. The selectmen’s figure is about $40,000 higher than the recommendation of the town’s Budget Committee.

If any of the articles are voted down, or if voters don’t allow an increase in the state’s allotted tax levy amount, then selectmen will have to rework a part or parts of the proposed budget, hold another public hearing, and another referendum vote.