County officials awaiting state numbers for UT budget
DOVER-FOXCROFT — Several days before the first meeting of the budget committee on Thursday Sept. 4, Piscataquis County officials are still awaiting some numbers from the state that will be part of the 2026-27 Unorganized Territory budget.
The numbers from the state are based in part on education costs, County Manager Michael Williams said during a meeting of the county commissioners on Tuesday morning. Expenses for the Maine Forest Service and general purpose aid are also included with these being covered by Maine’s 16 counties.
“I’m not giving a real sound answer because I’m not getting answers,” Williams said about questions he has received on the UT budget.
Once the numbers come in, Williams said he can finish calculating the UT finances in about five minutes.
“For whatever reason I’m not getting the numbers out of the state,” he said.
The budget advisory committee will convene to review the UT and county budgets and make recommendations. On an evening in mid to late November — typically a Monday night — the annual budget hearing takes place. The commissioners give final budget approval at one of the December meetings.
In other business, Williams said work continues on the Katahdin Iron Works Road construction.
He said at times the road will be down to one lane but it should at least be partially open moving forward.
The Atlantic Salmon Federation, in partnership with Piscataquis County, NOAA Fisheries and the Maine Department of Transportation, is working to replace two undersized culverts under the Katahdin Iron Works Road with new bridges to improve fish passage, flood capacity and the integrity of the road.
Because of the construction, the road was at times closed at the Bog Brook stream crossing just west of Route 11 in Ebeemee Township and at the Sucker Brook crossing, 4.5 miles west of Route 11.
The road between those two points was closed to traffic and access to Katahdin Iron Works, Gulf Hagas, the Appalachian Mountain Club’s lodges at Little Lyford Pond and Gorman Chairback and other points along the road was just available from Greenville via the KI Jo Mary Hedgehog gate. The road closure allowed time for construction of the two bridges and restoration of the road surface.
The project is funded by grants from a NOAA Fisheries Restoring Fish Passage Through Barrier Removal grant under the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and a grant from the Maine Department of Transportation’s Municipal Stream Crossing Upgrade Program.