We may comfort ourselves, when examining the $15 trillion national debt, that towns and states are required to balance their budgets each year, unlike the federal government. But wait. Even in Maine, the taxpayers can end up in trouble when a town does not plan ahead.

When I first moved to Gray, I recall the pride that people took in the town’s “savings account,” where money was being set aside for future large purchases such as fire trucks. This is called a Capital Improvement Plan (CIP), and is designed to work much like saving up (and receiving interest) before you need your next family car, instead of waiting until it’s too late and then needing to take out an auto loan.

The town has a carefully crafted 15-year CIP which lists all of the expected major expenses with estimated costs. The CIP calculates how much should be set aside into the capital plan each year, in order to level out the annual payments.

Sadly, Gray has been spending more and saving less. Soon the savings account will become empty, and we will still have those expenses. Instead of a family car, there is the million-dollar aerial ladder truck, which is due to be replaced in 2018.

Of course, some folks wonder if we need such an expensive piece of fire apparatus. As a former emergency medical responder with Gray Fire-Rescue, I cringe at my memories of firefighters slowly scrambling over each icy, smoking roof during many winter chimney fires prior to the town’s purchase of this equipment. I’m convinced of its value.

Regardless, an expensive truck is only one example of an item in the CIP. The plan includes vehicles, sidewalks, roads, bridges, computers and building improvements.

During the recession, when many towns were cutting staff and programs, Gray managed to maintain its services (and not raise taxes) by postponing some capital expenses and spending down much of its surpluses and savings. This has caused the annual CIP payment plan to balloon. According to the CIP, Gray should be putting $1.6 million into the capital plan next year alone, spending $900,000 on next year’s capital projects and setting aside the other $700,000 for future expenses. Recent annual budgets have not come close to that.

What are the options? There are five.

Purchases can be postponed, at the risk of equipment or roads becoming useless, unsafe, obsolete or highly expensive to maintain.

Occasionally the cost of special equipment can be shared with another town, although history has not provided many successful examples.

The town can try to cut other expenses, especially recurring ones. Unfortunately, this discussion often devolves into arguing about relatively small items compared with the huge expenses of roads, trucks and bridges. In good news, a couple of years ago Gray revised its employee health plan at considerable savings.

The fourth option is to wait until the bill is due and borrow the money to pay for that truck, or road, or washed-out bridge. In fact, three years ago Gray took out a lease-purchase plan to purchase five trucks. It is still paying for them.

The only remaining option is to raise taxes to make those CIP advance payments in addition to each year’s capital project expenses.

I struggled with this issue when I was on the Council, and some readers may remember my rants on the subject, which did not persuade anyone. The Gray Town Council is scheduled to have its annual CIP workshop on March 12.

My view is that we have tried the first four options and that it is well past time simply to ask the people, in a separate ballot measure, whether they want to put aside more money into saving for the future. Make no mistake, if accepted by the voters this option would mean a significant increase in taxes to cover the entire $1.6 million in the plan each year.

Nevertheless, it would be the people’s decision. I believe the only responsible approach is to admit the problem and to offer a solution that really balances the budget. Let the people decide whether to pay more now, or else to keep taxes low but go further and further into debt.

Mark D. Grover is a former Gray town councilor. Now his rants are unofficial.