FARMINGTON — Franklin County commissioners voted Tuesday to approve eight educational scholarships for students in unauthorized territories. The $138,037 total comes from the county’s tax increment financing program.

Recommended by the TIF Advisory Committee and approved unanimously were:

Brooke Douglas of Madrid Township for $17,736 to attend Central Maine Community College in Auburn.

Hayden Durrell of Madrid Township for $13,976 to attend Central Maine Community College in Auburn.

Payton Mitchell of Freeman Township for $21,474 to attend Thomas College in Waterville.

Madison Phelps of Freeman Township for $19,688 to attend Maine College of Public Health.

Anna Plog of Madrid Township for $13,308 to attend the University of Maine at Farmington.

Karsyn Rolbiecki of Salem Township for $16,195 to attend the University of Southern Maine in Portland or another campus.

Wyatt Sieminski of Madrid Township for $23,160 to attend Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island.

Commissioners voted 2-1 to approve a $12,500 scholarship for Samuel Cockerham of Freeman Township.

Chairman Lance Harvell of Farmington and Bob Carlton of Freeman Township voted in favor.

Carlton said after the meeting that the scholarship process has changed since four years ago when they gave Cockerham’s sister two $25,000 scholarships over multiple years. He said they now use the Free Application for Federal Student Aid information and other financial documents and are trying to be thoughtful and help students.

Harvell said Tuesday evening that he voted in favor to have consistency with the family.

Terry Brann of Wilton opposed Cockerham’s request because the committee did not recommended approving it.

The committee found the family’s federal student aid application indicated he could pay the full tuition of $87,196 at Bates College in Lewiston and is getting a “generous” aid package of $56,670, according to a note from the TIF committee. “While Sam is an impressive candidate, each of the other impressive candidates have demonstrated need,” a note from the committee next to his name reads.

The cap for individual scholarships is $50,000.

Municipal tax increment financing is a flexible finance tool used by municipalities, plantations and unorganized territories to leverage new property taxes generated by a specific project or projects within a defined geographic district, according to the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development. Any portion of the new taxes may be used to finance public or private projects for a defined statutorily allowable period of time, according to the website.

Franklin County’s TIF was established in 2008 when the county entered into an Enterprise Tax-Increment Finance and Development Program agreement with TransCanada Maine Wind Development in 2008 when it owned a 44-turbine wind energy development in Kibby and Skinner townships. TransCanada sold the wind energy project to Helix Maine Wind Development in 2017. It expires in 2039.

The account has an estimated $4.1 million and another $700,000 is expected in October, not factoring in recently approved expenditures.