Sanford residents on Tuesday voted against municipal and school budgets that would increase the property tax rate by 71 cents, but fell short of the threshold needed to defeat the two spending plans.

Residents voted on a $24.2 million city budget and a $38.1 million education budget. The combined budgets amounted to a 2.44 percent overall spending increase.

Voters rejected the municipal budget by a vote of 785 to 1,054. They rejected the school budget by a vote of 862 to 968.

The city budget process says the municipal and school budgets will not be deemed rejected unless the number of votes cast equals a minimum of 25 percent of the total cast in the last gubernatorial election. On Tuesday, 1,849 votes were cast, just short of the 1,867 threshold required.

The increase would result in an extra $120.70 on the tax bill of a home valued at $170,000. But city officials say that increase will be offset by an increase in the Homestead Exemption for anyone who owns a home valued at $170,000 or less.

Residents voted 1,207 to 617 in favor of continuing school budget votes.


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