Commissioners give their approval

To county and UT budgets

DOVER-FOXCROFT — While everything is not quite finalized, the Piscataquis County Commissioners approved both the 2016 county budget and the 2016-17 Unorganized Territory (UT) budget during a Dec. 16 meeting. Prior to the two votes the commissioners had approved a pair of union contracts, which both still need to be ratified by members in order for the agreement provisions to be in place.

County Manager Tom Lizotte said the pending contract with deputies, dispatchers and corrections employees is for 2016-18., with these individuals receiving a 1 percent raise next year and then 2 percent raises in 2017 and 2018. “That’s the biggest change and the budget line fits that raise,” he said. “It took four meetings over a three-week period, the last time we did that it took 20 months.”

The second proposed contract is with the sheriff’s department administration, the jail administrator, patrol lieutenant and telecommunications director, and Lizotte said this agreement was reached in about 10 minutes. “Basically the only change is the pay increase, again 1 percent the first year and then 2 percent the next two years,” he said.

“The UT budget is unchanged since the budget committee wrapped up its work on Nov. 18 and the public hearing on Nov. 30,” Lizotte said about the total of a little more than $1,471,870.

He explained the only change in the county budget are the pending raises in the pair of agreements. “The final bottom line is $4,018,000, basically the $11,000 increase is because of the union contracts,” Lizotte said.

In other business, the commissioners approved the hiring of a candidate for a newly created Emergency Management Agency (EMA) administrative/probate clerk position.

“We had interviews and we had a board and there was give on it,” EMA Director Tom Capraro said. “We decided on Brenda Clawson.” He said Clawson was the Jobs for Maine’s Graduates specialist at Foxcroft Academy the last two years, where she also has been a dorm parent and administrative assistant to the dean.

“She was at one point an office clerk in a law firm so that helps with the probate office,” Capraro said.”It’s a 35-hour week, as we discussed part of that would be over at probate.” He said Clawson should start the first or second week of January.

“It’s primarily a change in EMA from deputy director to administrative assistant,” Lizotte said, as the position work hours are for approximately four days with EMA and a fifth day with probate.