ROCKPORT — Observe! Rockport’s Memorial Day Parade will be held Monday, May 27, starting at 11 a.m. next to the Rockport Post Office. As usual, the parade includes the Camden Hills Regional High School award-winning marching band, fire and police vehicles, antique cars, scout troops, the Lincolnville Band, horses and riders, and so much more! The parade route will travel from the post office down to Memorial Park where a wreath will be laid, on to the bridge where a wreath will be thrown into the harbor to honor naval members and then a right hand turn to go up the hill to the cemetery located between Amsbury Hill and Route 1. If you’d like more information or to be part of the parade, call Dave Barry, 236-4226.

May 20 - 24 meetings

The Midcoast Solid Waste Association will meet Wednesday, May 22, at 7 p.m.

The Sewer Ordinance Committee will meet Thursday, May 23, at 10 a.m. The Midcoast Economic Development District Board of Directors will meet Thursday, May 23, at 9 a.m. in Damariscotta.

Remember, the town office and the library and all local schools will be closed Monday, May 27, in observance of Memorial Day.

Important upcoming school budget votes will be held Tuesday, May 28 (School Administrative District 28 at 6 p.m., Five Town CSD at 7 p.m.), at Camden Hills Regional High School. (See details below).

School budget process

Currently, voting on school budgets in Maine is a convoluted process at best. Many folks don’t realize that the school budget paper ballot voted on at June election (Tuesday, June 11), is basically just a rubber-stamped “validation” referendum on the bottom-line, total budget for both the SAD and the CSD.

This process has proven very limiting to many registered voters who either don’t understand the process or who for one reason or another are unable to attend the voting meeting. In addition, it creates additional expense involving overtime pay for town employees.

In order for registered voters to see individual line items for both the SAD and the CSD budgets and vote yay or nay on each item, you must attend special school vote public meetings for registered voters from the towns represented: Rockport and Camden for SAD 28; Rockport, Appleton, Camden, Hope, Lincolnville for the CSD. These meetings will be held on Tuesday, May 28, SAD at 6 p.m., CSD at 7 p.m., at CHRHS. Town Clerks/Registrars from the five-towns will validate voter registration status.

The meetings allow discussion for each article and then a hand vote is called. No secret ballot here, folks, except for the additional local article, to raise additional local funds over and above the essential programs and services model.

Following this process where line items are approved (or altered), the overall budget figure for both the SAD and the CSD is then presented to the voters on Election Day as validation referendum ballots.

On Election Day, in addition to the two school budget articles, voters will have a chance to change this two-step, two-day process. Voters will be asked on paper ballot on June 11: “DO YOU WISH TO CONTINUE THE VALIDATION REFERENDUM PROCESS THE WAY IT IS FOR THE NEXT THREE YEARS?”

The FY 2013-14 budget validation referendum ballot must include a separate question to enable voters to indicate whether they wish to continue the process for another three years or discontinue the process. A vote to continue the process does so for another three years. A vote to discontinue the process ends its use beginning with the FY 2014-15 budget year. A vote to discontinue the process also prevents the process from being reconsidered for another three years.

A “Yes” vote will require the MSAD No. 28 to continue to conduct a referendum to validate its annual school budget for the next three years. Yes” vote will require the Five Town CSD to continue to hold both the Budget Meeting and the Budget Referendum.  The Budget Meeting is a meeting of the voters to approve the budgeted amounts in each cost center.  The Budget Meeting is held at the Strom Auditorium late May, and we typically have between 50 and 200 voters turn out for this meeting.   The budget amounts approved at the Budget Meeting will then be approved in total at the public Referendum in June. The Referendum takes place in each of the member towns and we typically have between 1400 and 2000 voters participate.

A “No” vote will discontinue the budget validation referendum for at least three years and provide instead that the annual school budget shall be finally adopted at a meeting of the voters.

A “No” vote will discontinue the Budget Referendum for at least three years.  This means that the budget will be finally approved at the Budget Meeting held at the Strom Auditorium and will not go to vote at the town Referendums in June.

The Five Town CSD and the MSAD 28 voters have had both the Budget Validation Meeting and a Budget Referendum for the past six years.  

It’s official!

The Select Board formally approved interim town Manager Roger Moody’s recommendations to hire two new department heads. Bill Najpauer, new Planning and Development Director will assume his duties as on Monday, May 20. Tom Ford, current director will remain at his position through Friday, May 31. Jason Peasley was also appointed as Rockport’s new fire chief. He’ll assume his duties later this month.


Town Election, Town Meeting

Election Day is Tuesday, June 11 (8 am. to 8 p.m.) at the Town Office and Town Meeting is Wednesday, June 12 at 7 p.m. at the Opera House. On Election Day, registered voters (you may register that day), will receive a candidate ballot, a ballot for town ordinance revisions and Zoning Map changes and an SAD and a CSD ballot. Town Meeting will find registered voters voting on remaining articles, mainly the Town Budget. Newly elected (re-elected) town officials will be sworn in and there will be a brief Select Board organizational meeting.

Absentee ballots are now available at the Town Office for the election. Normally, absentee ballots may be turned in any time up to the polls closing on Election Day (8 p.m.), but this Election Day there is a caveat. The school ballots can’t be returned until Wednesday, May 29, the day after the special school vote public meetings for registered voters held on May 28.  

Cops grant; town manager search and seven interviews

Police Chief Mark Kelley’s request to file a “Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), Hiring Program Grant” with the U.S. Dept. of Justice and also reallocation of the 2011 Cascade Fund from funding a canine unit to town security infrastructure were  approved. This is indeed good news for town residents since grant funds could be used in part to pay for the additional police officer, which is included in this year’s budget. Chief Kelley hopes the new officer will take the place of the school resource officer that was eliminated in 2006.

No word yet on the Town Manager search, although the field was narrowed to seven strong candidates (all from Maine) with first-round interviews completed. Select Board Chair Bill Chapman reports that the Select Board will continue working on the process and hopes to have an announcement in the near future. Stay tuned!

The Next Regular Select Board meeting will be held on Monday, June 24, at 7 p.m. Opera House Meeting Room, televised on Channel 22.

Town committee updates   

Both the planning and zoning boards will have a full seven-member complement for 2013-14, thanks to the term-expiring folks who agreed to serve another term. Following election, the Rockport Budget Committee will also be at full strength. In addition, other town committees added members. Capital Improvement (a fairly new committee, approved in April):  Will Gartley, Bill Lane, Vern Hunter, Steve Daly; Cemetery Committee: Margaret Carleton; and Lime Kiln Ad Hoc Committee (another new committee approved in April), Heather Bartlett.

The town relies on a number of diverse committees to supplement the work of the Select Board and town employees. There are a number of committees with vacancies. If you might be interested in helping, call the town office, 236-9648 for additional information or check the web site:  www.town.rockport.me.us.

Emergency Medical Services update

The EMS review team consists of three members from each of the four towns, two Select Board members and the Town Manager. Rockport’s members are Roger Moody, Interim Town Manager; Ken McKinley and Geoff Parker, Select Board. That review team received invaluable information from Atlanta Partners EMS Executive Director Rick Petrie when he addressed common questions about EMS. Next step is a 4-town public meeting on Wednesday, May 29, at the Camden Opera House at 7 p.m. with the review team available to  answer citizens' questions and discuss both the process/choices for EMS selection.

Speaking of health

I pride myself on keeping up with all kinds of things, especially medical costs/programs, but until last week, I didn’t know about the Knox County Rx Drug Discount program, available free of charge to all Knox County residents regardless of age, income or other factors. Card holders can save as much as 25 percent to 58 percent  on prescriptions obtained from participating pharmacies. Even if you have insurance, sometimes that doesn’t cover certain prescriptions and in that case the card is handy. To get a card, just call the Knox county EMA office at 594-5155 and they’ll mail your card. Currently, over 3,100 Knox County residents hold the card, collectively saving more than $100,000 each year.