Just five people entered the basement of the Belfast courthouse for an August meeting. Three were county officials. One was a reporter. The other was concerned citizen Eric Buch.
In December, Buch and the Waldo County officials were surrounded by dozens who packed the small courtroom and a hallway outside. It took 2 1/2 hours to get through public comments on a proposed budget increase of 36%. Commissioners delayed action on it following the outcry.
“Our commissioners are feeling the heat at the moment just because of the amount of public review that there has been related to the budget,” said Buch, who lives in Belfast.
They are far from the only county officials facing fresh scrutiny this year. Taxpayers across Maine are keeping a closer-than-usual eye on their county officials after a series of budget crises forced an often-ignored layer of Maine’s government into the spotlight.
From the dramatic budget crisis in Washington County that led to a failed November referendum and a 17% tax increase inked this month to rising jail costs in Penobscot County that contributed to a $7 million shortfall, worry about property taxes and service cuts are driving heavy turnout at normally quiet commissioner meetings.
Maine’s counties have relatively little power, primarily managing only sheriffs’ departments, jails and emergency services. Since 2020, multiple candidates competed for office in only 41% of commissioner races and 28% of sheriff’s elections, a 2025 report from Democracy Maine found.
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With a high degree of Maine’s political power delegated to towns and cities, even Mainers who pay attention to local or state politics are unlikely to keep close tabs on what York County Commissioner Justin Chenette, a former Democratic lawmaker from Saco, called a “lost level” of government.
He said that even as a state representative, county government was “out of sight, out of mind” for him. For years, few saw the limited scrutiny on counties as a major problem. But counties gained significance in recent years as federal money from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 and a national opioid settlement poured in.
Those dollars meant that the counties, which have limited professional staff in Maine, were making big spending decisions with little oversight. Funds from the opioid settlement stirred controversy in Waldo County, while ARPA funds helped mask the extent of Washington County’s budget problems.
Those controversies have driven turnout. But Chenette said that in a place like York, where county spending has not caused a major controversy, getting people interested can still be difficult. He cited 4:30 p.m. meetings that begin earlier than ones in most cities and towns. Other counties meet during the day. The August meeting in Belfast was at 10 a.m.
Even in places where turnout has increased, many of those paying the closest attention to counties are municipal officials. Penobscot County Commissioner Dan Tremble said that despite the recent budget controversy there, he has not noticed a major upswing in public interest.
“Even on this current situation where people are showing up, it’s not the general public; it’s mostly town officials and town managers and elected officials,” he said.
That is because budget problems often ultimately cause headaches for local officials. When counties set their annual budgets, they effectively decide what amount municipalities will have to contribute when making their own budgets. If a county dramatically increases its tax levy, it can force towns to weigh cuts or tax hikes at a time when the county’s budget cannot be changed.
Adam Coover, a recently appointed Piscataquis County commissioner, said that his district has been paying attention to his work. But he also emphasized that much of that attention comes from town officials.
“I hear regularly from town managers, I say it would be more on the town side of things, where people are paying attention.”
Even though engagement in Waldo County politics is still limited, Buch thinks some newfound interest in its business might be here to stay.
“It’s a whole layer of government that hasn’t gotten the attention that it deserves,” Buch said. “I think we’re turning a corner here where we’re going to find that communities … are going to be demanding much closer accountability for county government.”
Daniel O’Connor is a Report for America corps member who covers rural government as part of the partnership between the Bangor Daily News and The Maine Monitor, with additional support from BDN and Monitor readers.