RANGELEY — Selectmen signed a 78-article warrant Monday for a proposed $4.72 million municipal budget that will go to public hearing at 6 p.m. on May 24, then to voters on June 14, both at the Town Office.

The spending plan for 2022-23 does not include Regional School Unit 78 or Franklin County assessments. The package also does not factor in an estimated $1 million in revenues to offset expenses.

Two three-year terms on the Board of Selectmen will be filled in June, as voters decide between Donald “Donnie” Nuttall, Samantha “Sam” White, Jacob “Jake” Beaulieu, and incumbent Ethan Shaffer. Selectman Stephen Philbrick is not seeking reelection.

Incumbent Jonathan Adkins is running for one of two positions on the Sewer Commission. No one took out papers for six terms on the Budget Committee or two seats on the Park Commission, Town Clerk Marti Belt said Tuesday.

Candidates seeking election to the RSU 78 board of directors are Kayla Alexander for a one-year term and Danielle Lemay for a two-year term. There is still a two-year term that had no seekers, Belt said.

A citizens’ petition on the warrant asks voters if they want to authorize selectmen and the town manager to take any actions necessary to enter a tax-exempt lease-purchase agreement for the purchase of a pumper truck at a total cost not to exceed $750,000, and giving the select board the discretion to set the further terms of the agreement.

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This truck would replace Rangeley Fire Rescue’s 27-year-old Engine 3, which is currently not compliant with National Fire Protection Association standards, with a new 2023 engine totaling $747,663. The department is requesting to enter a seven-year lease, with an annual amount of about $43,908. That amount is planned to come from the annual $50,000 raised and/or, appropriated for the department’s reserve, according to information provided by the town. Rangeley is responsible for about 49.4% of the cost of the apparatus with the rest being billed out to the plantations as well as Oxford and Franklin county commissioners.

The new apparatus would be built specifically for Rangeley and would include a pump under cab, which would allow easy access to remove a part if it breaks in the future, a suspension system and a galvanized frame, among other components. The life of this apparatus would be 25 years per national standards.

The existing 1996 truck has 3,912 hours on it which is the equivalent of 234,720 miles, Fire Rescue Chief Michael Bacon said Tuesday.

Selectperson Shelly Lowell had some questions on the warrant article Monday night including what the interest rate would be if the article is approved by voters. The answer is expected to be available at the public hearing.

The fire rescue coverage area is about 600 square miles. At a previous meeting Bacon gave a breakdown of percentages other entities are responsible for covering, with Rangeley Plantation responsible for 16.6%; Dallas Plantation, 12.6%; Sandy River Plantation, 10.7%; Franklin County, 5.2%; and Oxford County, 5.3%.

The Town Meeting warrant also includes $224,711 in donation requests, Assistant Town Manager Traci Pitt-Lavoie said Tuesday.

Residents will be asked if they want the town to join the Maine Public Employees Retirement System, effective July 1. If voters approve it, two plans would be offered, Town Manager Joe Roach said in March.

The warrant also includes $50,000 for premium pay for eligible employees to be funded from the town’s $121,978.90 allotment from the American Rescue Plan Act. The town has received half of the funds and expects to receive the other half later in the year.

There is also a proposed 3% cost-of-living increase for nonunion employees in the budget.


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