Entire Maine town pressured to close after its solely clerk quits over denied trip

The only clerk in a small Maine town resigned after the board of selectmen denied her vacation request.

Christen Bouchard was the town clerk in Passadumkeag, Maine, since 2020. She requested a two-week vacation a few month and a half in the past. Her plea was denied by the board of selectmen. They claimed that nobody was available to step in for her.

She left on April 7. The city has had nobody to register automobiles, preserve crucial records, or communicate with the state Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.

The place of town clerk isn’t the only important opening in Passadumkeag. The town of 356 people also lacks a code enforcement officer, an assessor, an animal control officer, and a school administration official, based on The Bangor Day by day News.

The town workplace shut right down to in-person guests till additional notice, according to an announcement despatched out on April 19.

“The Treasurer might be in a couple of days per week to just accept payments on issues such as taxes,” the assertion learn. “Please call the workplace earlier than heading out to do any enterprise here as there are not any designated hours of operation now.”

Treasurer Barbara Boyer has apparently been coming into the office to collect tax funds. Still, she is reportedly unable to register autos, do building inspections, conduct animal welfare checks, or undertake lots of the other duties that Ms. Bouchard was accountable for.

It’s unclear when the town will have the ability to fill the vacant positions and reopen for enterprise. In March, city residents rejected a price range article meant to fund town operations after city officers failed to adequately clarify the reasoning for a proposed wage increase. The finances article additionally didn't include funding for a code enforcement officer, a necessity under Maine regulation.

Town officers said that they're discovering it tough to fill the open posts because of financial uncertainties. It is usually because of the city’s small inhabitants, and the municipal roles being only part-time. Ms Bouchard was only contracted to work 16 hours each week — though she mentioned she usually worked more — and was paid just $13,500 per 12 months.

“We've got been left with a large number from years of neglect and are doing as much as we are able to to get our town back so as,” first selectman Brad McKechnie said.

“I do imagine in time with the team we've got, we'll get Passadumkeag back in order and searching good, however it should take a bit and goes to be a problem for sure.”

In the interim, the people of Passadumkeag are relying on selectmen and other municipalities to perform basic governmental responsibilities. It includes getting registering their vehicles within the close by municipality of Howland.