Now we wany to add some text to the beginning!!!!!!!!!@Byline 2:

HEBRON – Following Saturday’s annual town meeting the selectmen see the town’s tax rate remaining stable at $17.50 per thousand dollars of valuation for 2003 as the voters approved a municipal budget which is $53,383 less than the $381,161 approved a year ago. The amount approved at Saturday’s meeting was $327,778.

Breaking down the approved budget roads proved to be the most expensive accounts as the total for 2003 came to $195,800. That amount, however, will be reduced somewhat as the plan is to use $40,000 from the Urban Rural Initiative Program provided through funds from the State of Maine to help reduce the amount needed for summer roads and tar.

Other areas of the budget include $69,095 for general government accounts, $49,700 for solid waste disposal, $43,179 to cover costs for protection, and $10,001 for social service donations.

The budget approved Saturday, though, does not include the school assessment for SAD 17 or the Oxford County tax which are both expected to increase. The SAD 17 bill is estimated at $455,421, up about $15,000, and the County has finalized a figure of $31,324, which is an increase of $1,659 over last year. As a result the town could be looking at a bottom line figure of $814,523. With SAD 17 and the County factored in there will still be an estimated decrease of $36,816 from last year.

An exact amount for the school assessment will not be known until after the June 10 referendum regarding the total budget for SAD 17.

As for non-budgetary articles none proved to be controversial and all passed with very little discussion.

At one point, however, the voters turned away briefly from the regular warrant and voted overwhelmingly to support a resolution drafted by SAD 17 calling for the State to allow the Town of West Paris to keep its elementary school.

The resolution comes as a result of the State announcing recently that it will not put any more money into schools such as the Agnes Gray School in West Paris. Along with the announcement it was suggested that a new school planned for South Paris be made large enough to accommodate children from West Paris. The Hebron voters, however, felt that it would be unfair for West Paris to be the only town in the district without its own community school as all the other towns in SAD 17 not only have their own school, but have new schools for the children to attend.

With the positive vote of support the selectmen plan to sign the resolution and send it on to the state.====