Orient woman questions tax bill

By Joseph Cyr
Staff Writer
    ORIENT — Claims of double taxation have at least one Orient resident requesting a formal tax abatement for her 2011 taxes.
    In letter to the Houlton Pioneer Times (which appears on page Three B), Marybeth Foley claims that the town of Orient collected an additional $28,975 in tax dollars during the annual town meeting, held last August. Specifically, Foley, who is a one-time member of the town’s Board of Selectmen, claims that $12,125 was raised to pay selectmen, planning board, appeals board, code enforcement and animal control officer salaries when funds for those salaries had already been raised in a separate warrant article.
    She also claims that an additional $400 to pay three school committee member; $1,800 to pay registrar of voters, ambulance committee representative, moderator, ballot clerks, election warden and health officer; $7,700 to pay a transfer station attendant; and an additional $900 to pay a cemetery groundskeeper were all included in two different places on town warrants.
    A website (www.nowthefacts.com) also posts many of Foley’s accusations on the town’s government.
    Orient Town Clerk Alicia Silkey confirmed Tuesday morning that the town had received a formal tax abatement request from Foley.
    “The letter was sent to our office and I sent it to the board,” Silkey said. “The selectmen discussed it at their last meeting. She will receive an answer to her questions with a letter from the board.”
    Silkey, who served as the town clerk for the past 10 years, said Foley’s tax abatement request was a separate matter and has been forwarded to the town’s real estate assessor’s agent, Michael MacPherson of Just Value Associates of Presque Isle.
    “These were all questions that Marybeth brought up at our annual town meeting last August,” Silkey said. “Unfortunately, she has not attended any meetings since getting voted out (of office). Ms. Foley did not know the financial standing of the town. For the first time ever, the town had to borrow TAN (Tax Anticipation Note) funds.”
    Silkey added that the town’s auditor, Douglas Hollingsworth of Bangor, reviewed all of the warrant articles appearing in the town report.
    “There was input on how to write the warrant articles on all the legalities from MMA (Maine Municipal Association),” Silkey said. “I don’t know what the problem is. If, in fact, the town had requested more money than they actually need for a line item, that money reverts back to your surplus account. Our surplus account is empty.”
    Attempts to reach board chairman Donald Ellis for additional comments were not successful by presstime.