Raymond officials have a long road ahead if they want to leave Cumberland County government for what they see as the more amenable and tax friendly confines of Oxford County.

Last week, the Board of Selectmen voted 4-0, with Lonnie Taylor absent, to explore the possibility of seceding from Cumberland County, where they feel the interests of Raymond and other rural towns are pushed aside in favor of the Portland area.

“Raymond is rural and Cumberland County government is really geared toward the cities,” said Selectman Mark Gendron. “Oxford County is rural, and that is what it is geared to. It’s a better fit.”

But to undertake the secession process is rare, and its success even rarer, as municipalities must go through a series of steps that include a petition, public hearings, and ultimately votes by the residents and two county governments.

Rare cases

A handful of Maine communities have tried to secede, usually over spending and tax disagreements. Recently, in 2004, both Isleboro and Mount Desert Island took steps toward secession from Waldo and Hancock counties, respectively, but failed. Otisfield is the only Maine town to successfully secede from a county, having left Cumberland County in 1978 because the town did not want to pay to maintain the Cumberland County Civic Center in Portland.

If Raymond is going to secede, it is going to need some help. State law says in order to secede the municipality must share a political subdivision border with both counties. Raymond is bordered by Casco, New Gloucester, Gray, Windham and Frye Island, all towns in Cumberland County; and Poland, in Androscoggin County.

Secession to Oxford County would require the Legislature to amend that portion of the law in the town’s favor. Rep. John C. Robinson, R-Raymond, has agreed to submit the new language.

“Cumberland County has continued to ignore the tax burden it places on the small rural towns in the Lakes Region,” he wrote in an e-mail. “I am supportive of the board’s recommendations and I am working to draft legislation that will facilitate the needed technical changes in the law.”

Additionally, a petition favoring secession and signed by 10 percent of the Raymond voters in the last gubernatorial election would have to be submitted to selectmen. Following a public hearing, two-thirds of those present would have to approve the petition by secret ballot, sending it to a local referendum. If successful locally, the secession must be approved by the Legislature, then finally by voters in the two counties in question.

Their money’s worth

Selectmen said secession may be worth the trouble if it provides the town with a county government that is accessible and open to discussion over rising taxes in the face of stagnant services.

This year, Raymond’s county tax bill is $546,353, a 7.7 percent increase over the previous year. Since 2002, the town’s county taxes have risen over 70 percent. The town, Gendron said, gets little in return.

“We put very few demands on county government,” he said.

When the town did seek more services, as Gendron did earlier this year when he led an effort with other area towns in asking for additional patrols from the sheriff’s office, they are met with little more than pleasantries, he said.

“They listen to us politely and that’s the end of it,” Gendron said.

Even though secession would move Raymond’s county seat from Portland to South Paris, selectmen don’t see it as much of an issue.

“We can be to virtually everything they have in the same or less time than now,” Gendron said.

Oxford County officials are open to the idea, but first need to hear more information on how the move would impact residents, said Commissioner Steve Merrill.

Calling Raymond’s decision to explore Oxford County “complementary,” Merrill went on to say, “I do believe that our board will be receptive to hearing more details from Raymond as they proceed further and we will give serious consideration to any proposals in the best interest of the Oxford County taxpayers.”

Cumberland County Manager Peter Crichton concedes it is a challenge for county officials to balance the varied needs and concerns of residents in urban, suburban and rural communities, but said Raymond’s complaints have not fallen on deaf ears.

Law enforcement takes up a substantial portion of the county budget, more than 15 percent, Crichton said. He has proposed a 2009 spending plan that would increase the funding for law enforcement, possibly opening the way for additional patrols. With the state now controlling the jail system, a significant source of tax increases, the budget may also level out a bit, Crichton said.

County Commissioner Malory Shaughnessy said when compared to municipal and school taxes, the county assessment is low, between $70-100 per household. But services like the registry of deeds, probate court and emergency management are somewhat invisible, she said, and often go unnoticed, making people more likely to buck at the prospect of tax increases.

A matter of valuation

One of the main reasons Raymond’s county tax bill has been rising is that Raymond’s property valuation has been rising as well, Shaughnessy said. Property valuation determines the share of the county tax paid by each community, and Raymond’s has more than doubled since 2002.

Legislation was proposed two years ago that sought relief for communities facing rapid increases in taxes due to rising valuation, but the bill did not make it very far, Shaughnessy said.

“I think we need to find another way to address that,” she said, adding that it was a typical issue on Maine’s coast. “It’s not just in Cumberland County that we are seeing this, it is across the state of Maine.”

Crichton said the problem may be minimized if property assessments were conducted on a countywide basis, so that towns do not get behind, maintain lower values, and subsequently pay less than their share.

Tax reform that lessens the burden placed on property taxes could also help towns like Raymond that have high valuations, Crichton and Shaughnessy said. County government is dependent solely on property taxes for funding, so any cost increases directly hit property tax bills.

Shaughnessy is scheduling a time to meet with Raymond selectmen to discuss their differences with Cumberland County, and hopes she can convince them that the issues can and will be addressed.

She is doubtful, however, that the state will allow a town to join a county that it does not border. If the secession is granted, then what is to stop other towns from seeking to join counties far removed for economic reasons? Shaughnessy asked.

“I think that is a door that the Legislature does not want to open,” she said.