BELLOWS FALLS — Village residents will gather at the Bellows Falls Opera House on Thursday, Sept. 19, at 7 p.m., for a special meeting to vote for a third time on the fiscal 2014 village budget.
Voters rejected a village budget of $1,945,357 by a 58-34 margin at the annual village meeting on May 20.
After a revised plan that dropped a ninth officer for the Bellows Falls police department, a budget of $1,883,182 was approved by a 52-43 vote at a second meeting on June 24.
However, a petition drive led by village residents Jim Mitchell and Deborah Wright picked up more than 100 signatures, enough to force a third village meeting to reconsider the budget.
On Sept. 19, voters will first reconsider the June 24 vote. If that article is approved, a new budget figure must be approved in a second vote.
Supporters of the reconsideration of the budget say village residents can't afford the current levels of property taxes, which are among the highest in Vermont, and seek to make further cuts in the village police and fire departments.