Dear Editor:

I support Kim Dolce for election to the Wiscasset Select Board. Here is why.

A tax rate in the 18 mil range is common in many Maine communities. The catch is that those communities do not have a piggy bank to tap to keep their tax rate down if they spend more than their tax structure yields, as is the case in Wiscasset.

Wiscasset’s piggy bank was established through forward thinking by elected leaders who wisely prepared for a significant reduction in the Town’s tax base. The intent was to enable a transition to the fiscal reality our neighboring communities face in controlling municipal spending.

Current spending in Wiscasset exceeds returns from existing tax structure, to the extent that the piggy bank is being tapped for all the income it provides, and a portion of the principal as well. Without the piggy bank, a mill rate in the mid to upper 20s would likely be necessary to pay the bills at current spending levels.

Absent hard choices on priorities, spending levels are due to rise. Much of Wiscasset’s infrastructure built during the heyday of Maine Yankee is aging. The recent report from the Sewer Department Superintendent underscores this issue.

I support Kim Dolce. She is not burdened by local, social or familial ties that would impede or influence her decisions or actions. She is one sharp individual, and I would expect nothing less than the highest level of competence in the position she seeks.

Bill Sutter

Wiscasset