I read in the Sunday Paper the new criteria for getting a copy of a birth, marriage, and death certificate: when needed, you will have to produce an ID with picture, possibly two letters by people who know you, and a few other contortions, plus a charge of $15 (up $5) might get your certificate.

After talking to my town clerk, each town has to send 25 percent of that $15 to the state. Isn’t this new taxes?

Also, I know for a fact after spending over 37 years in the town office that in our case what we collected each year went a long way towards paying for a deputy so we didn’t have to raise much to pay them.

I also know for a fact that in small towns all the town clerk gets for pay is the fees. Say she collects $3,000 for a year and $2,000 of that are certificate fees, she has to send $500 to the state. Ultimately, the town would have to pay her that $500 back, to make up for that loss.

Guess what? NEW TAXES AGAIN.
Sincerely,
Jean Orbeton
Kingfield