Topsham proposes 3% municipal budget increase; MSAD 75 school costs rise 5.5%

Town Manager Mark Waltz presented a $14.67 million operating budget to the Select Board in early February, a proposal that represents roughly a 3% increase over the current fiscal year and covers the municipal portion of Topsham residents’ property-tax bills. Waltz told reporters the municipal figure does not by itself determine individual tax bills because county and school assessments remain pending.

Waltz outlined the variables that will decide homeowner impacts, saying, "How much it changes, is a mixture of what get passed for expenditures, then how much surplus the Select Board decides to use at the end of August [to offset taxes] based on what we finish out with in June, and what the property values are." The Finance Committee and Select Board will review the draft before a public hearing on April 16 and a town meeting vote on May 13. Superintendent Heidi O’Leary was expected to present a recommended school budget to the School Board on March 9 as the town awaits final district numbers.

Municipal line-item detail in the FY26 draft shows specific departmental needs. Public Works lists recent accomplishments including installing a new sidewalk on a section of Mall Road, installing a rain garden, and paving projects in the Bay Park neighborhood, a section of Main Street, Mill Road and Garden Lane. Several budget lines in the draft are dated 2/11/2025 in the town document; the presentation to the Select Board is described as occurring in early February 2026, a dating difference the town has not publicly reconciled in the draft excerpts available.

Public safety requests drive several increases. The Fire and EMS draft adds $4,000 for uniforms to buy winter gear intended to reduce use of structural firefighting coats because of carcinogen and PFAS concerns, a $6,000 Stryker warranty and preventative maintenance cost for stretchers, $15,000 added for vehicle maintenance citing an aging fleet, $2,000 for required EMS classes including ACLS, PALS and PHTLS, and an added $1,000 for physicals in a truncated line-item explanation. The draft notes the department is down to one spare air pack while new packs are planned in capital spending.

Police department detail in the draft includes $23,500 for vehicle maintenance for a 12-vehicle fleet with eight fully marked cruisers, a fuel budget of $51,359 based on an estimated 15,572 gallons at $3.19 per gallon, and $13,000 for a "Risk Management Approach" to training covering de-escalation, mental health awareness, less-lethal munitions and active shooter response. The draft also notes using local businesses for cruiser maintenance where possible and cites a Ford dealership labor rate of $169 per hour.

School costs will amplify Topsham taxpayers’ bills. Voters approved a $57.88 million MSAD 75 budget on June 11, a roughly 5.5% increase that raises the local towns’ share by about $2.83 million or 9%. Topsham’s assessment will exceed $14.2 million, an increase of roughly 8.1% from the prior year. District officials cited a projected 13% jump in employee health insurance and salary and benefit increases; the approved budget adds positions including a social worker, a board-certified behavior analyst, two prekindergarten teachers and an elementary teacher, and sets aside $50,000 for phone-management pouches and $20,000 for an instructional AI platform.

With municipal hearings set for April 16 and a town meeting vote on May 13, Topsham faces a compressed spring calendar in which Select Board surplus decisions, updated assessor valuations over the summer, and the district’s finalized numbers together will determine the final property-tax impact for 2026-27.