Maine
Water bills are shooting up in rural Maine
One of the largest utility bill hikes in the state this year came to residents in a small, rural community not far from the New Hampshire border. After years of stagnation, the local water company increased its rates by 75% this summer.
“People were not happy,” said David Walton, chair of the board that oversees the West Paris Water District. But he said the change was unavoidable.
Expenses have been rising rapidly for the utility, which serves about 220 customers in Oxford County.
Last year, tears in the reservoir cover allowed contaminants like E. coli into the water system, forcing residents to boil water and requiring the state to intervene. This August, an intake pump failed, prompting another boil-water order. And the district still needs to install a new water tank, which will cost more than $2 million, Walton said.
“We were in the red. … Our infrastructure was aged and failing,” Walton said in a phone interview earlier this month. “With that rate increase, we knew that we would be barely breaking even.”
Walton and his team upped the minimum quarterly fee from $87.47 to $153.07 — or from about $29.16 to $51.02 each month — according to filings with state regulators. It was the first substantial change in about six years, the utility said.
A similar story is playing out at other small water districts throughout the state, where rates have failed to keep pace with rising expenses and maintenance needs for decades in some cases, according to industry experts and a Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram analysis of rate cases filed with the Public Utilities Commission.
Since the start of this year, about 40 of the 152 water utilities regulated by the commission have filed proposals to raise their rates. Most reflect smaller increases that are part of a yearslong pattern of incremental change.
But in at least half a dozen districts, rates have risen or are slated to rise by 20% or more by Jan. 1. That’s a greater increase than most Mainers saw on their electricity bills between last year and this year.
The changes come as Mainers, especially older residents on fixed incomes, contend with high living costs across the board. At the same time, the state says there is a pressing need for heightened investment in Maine’s drinking water infrastructure, including to safeguard it from the effects of climate change, according to a report released in May. That could force more budgetary dilemmas.
Kirsten Hebert, executive director of the Maine Rural Water Association, said keeping rates as low as possible is a “very well-meaning” approach, but it ignores the practical realities associated with operating a complex infrastructure system and often leads to a backlog of necessary work.
Beyond West Paris, the biggest increases have been proposed or implemented for customers of water districts in South Berwick, Anson and Madison, Shapleigh, Corinna and Fort Kent.
In Fort Kent, residents are also facing a 75% increase — the first in more than two decades. That would raise the minimum cost from about $15.15 to about $26.52 a month starting in January, though actual rates are billed bimonthly.
That revenue is intended to upgrade aging infrastructure, like several water mains that need to be replaced.
Fort Kent resident Joey Ouellette, 49, called the roughly $10 per month increase manageable but questioned whether such a sudden change could have been mitigated.
“I think a more gradual increase to kind of keep up with inflation would have probably been a better idea,” Ouellette said. He said there have been a few changes to the town’s staffing and leadership over the last few years, so “maybe some of that got lost in translation.”
SMALL UTILITIES, BIG INCREASES
About half of Mainers get their water from shared systems, rather than from private wells. Most of those systems are consumer-owned, including municipal water departments and quasi-governmental water districts, according to spokesperson Susan Faloon.
The largest rate hikes have been centered in those consumer-owned utilities, said Public Advocate Heather Sanborn, whose office represents Maine’s ratepayers. Sanborn said these types of utilities have no profit-motive to overinvest in new infrastructure.
“Instead, their management may take a cautious approach and under-invest in aging infrastructure,” Sanborn said in an email. “This can keep rates artificially low for a time, but then the under-investment will need to be addressed.”
At the same time, small water utilities have felt expenses rise for years — from electric bills, salaries and supplies — and they have fewer customers through which costs can be spread. These smaller utilities are especially common in rural corners of the state, where residents generally have lower incomes and tighter budgets.
“So, relatively small changes in costs can have a big rate impact,” Sanborn said.
Faloon also pointed to small customer bases as a contributing factor. She said the state’s smallest utilities, which often serve fewer than 1,000 customers, are seeing some of the largest increases because of aging infrastructure and long-overdue rate changes.
“A good portion of Maine’s water infrastructure is aging and in need of replacement,” she said in an email.
Hebert said there have been more large increases this year than has been typical in her more than two decades with the group, as years of deferred cost increases finally hit.
“As a result of maintaining a low rate, preventative maintenance wasn’t necessarily addressed. They’re not putting aside monies for depreciation, they’re not putting aside monies for capital projects,” Hebert said. “And then that day comes that now they have to do something.”
AIMING FOR CONSISTENCY
Water utilities can pursue several types of rate changes, each with its own set of rules. While some set a cap on potential increases, others don’t, meaning there is no absolute limit on how big an increase utilities can pursue each year.
Over the last couple of years, regulators have pursued “an aggressive education and information campaign” to ensure smaller utilities know how to approach rate changes and encourage them to pursue more frequent and incremental changes, Faloon said.
“It appears the commission is starting to see the fruits of those efforts in both more frequent rate cases and rate cases from utilities the commission has not heard from in a while,” Faloon said. “Generally, the commission is seeing an increase in rate cases, and this is a good thing for the long-term viability of Maine’s water utilities.”
Part of that work has been highlighting a relatively new mechanism, known as a 6104-B rate increase, which allows consumer-owned utilities to raise their rates by 1.5% every 11 months. That process was approved by the Legislature in 2023 as a means of softening rate hikes and encouraging steady investment in infrastructure, and its adoption by utilities has outpaced what the commission anticipated, Faloon said.
In some cases, regulators can open investigations and compel utilities to adjust rates if they are not found to be reasonable based on expenses, projected investments and the state of the system. But the commission “does not typically force a (customer-owned utility) to raise rates,” Faloon said.
Chairman Philip L. Bartlett II said the commission intervenes in cases of mismanagement or safety issues, but is “not roaming the streets” evaluating small water utilities’ finances. He noted that smaller utilities often have fewer resources than their larger counterparts, so the commission aims to position itself as an approachable resource — not just an enforcer.
“We’re not going out district by district, although we are trying to increase outreach,” Bartlett said in an interview Monday. “We don’t want them to see us as the enemy. We want to try to be helpful.”
Sanborn, the public advocate, noted that water utilities are regulated by the utilities commission, which focuses on finances, and the state’s Drinking Water Commission, which focuses on water quality and safety but does not oversee customer rates.
“Consumer-owned water is a little bit of a hybrid in terms of who it is accountable to,” Sanborn said.
Hebert, with the rural water association, recommends water utilities review their rates at least once a year and pursue the newly available 1.5% increase whenever possible. Several water utility and town leaders, including Walton in West Paris, told the Press Herald they planned on doing so.
Suzie Paradis, Fort Kent’s town manager, said the town had no choice but to pursue the massive hike this year, but plans to pursue smaller increases “on a regular basis.”
“We don’t want to see this happen again,” she said. “It’s not fair to our citizens. It’s not fair to our department.”
The BDN Opinion section operates independently and does not set news policies or contribute to reporting or editing articles elsewhere in the newspaper or on bangordailynews.com
Michael Capeci is the former chairman of the Bangor GOP.
Let’s be honest about Maine’s current state.
For many families, the cost of living has become unsustainable. Housing is out of reach for many young people. Energy bills keep rising. Many small businesses are struggling under taxes and regulations that make it harder to grow. Rural hospitals are under strain and despite years of increased state spending, the results are not showing up in people’s daily lives.
Concurrently, Maine continues to lose young workers to other states. That is not a statistic, it is a warning sign.
To me, the question in this Republican primary for governor is not about slogans. It is whether we continue with a political approach that has failed to reverse these trends, or whether we nominate someone with new ideas. I think that someone is Owen McCarthy.
Owen is not a political insider. He is an entrepreneur from Patten, a small town where opportunity is not assumed, it is built. He grew up in a working-class family, became the first in his family to graduate from college graduating from the University of Maine, and founded MedRhythms, a healthcare technology company focused on neurological treatment.
He didn’t just talk about opportunity. He built it. That distinction matters, because Maine’s problem is not a lack of debate it is a lack of results. We have seen the trajectory: higher costs, slower growth, and a steady outmigration of young workers. I believe Owen McCarthy represents a break from that pattern.
His Maine 2040 plan focuses on creating 50,000 new jobs in sectors where Maine has real advantages — maritime and defense, advanced forest products, and life sciences. These are export-driven industries tied directly to Maine’s workforce, geography, and institutions. What sets Owen apart is not only what he proposes, but how he approaches governing.
He prioritizes modernizing permitting so projects do not stall. He supports using technology to reduce costs and increase efficiency. He focuses on making it easier to build, hire, and expand in Maine.
That same practical mindset extends to healthcare. Expanding telehealth, strengthening EMS systems, improving provider flexibility, and shifting toward earlier intervention are not abstract reforms. They are system upgrades designed to improve access while controlling costs.
Maine voters consistently respond to competence. They reward candidates who understand problems and present plans to solve them. I believe they are tired of rhetoric that does not translate into results, and skeptical of politics that prioritizes messaging over execution.
Owen’s approach is grounded in solving the issues that shape daily life — affordability, healthcare access, job creation, and government efficiency. That is not just policy positioning. It is a governing model that speaks directly to voters.
Some will point to his lack of political experience. But I believe Maine’s core problems are not the result of insufficient political experience; they are the result of policies that have failed to deliver measurable improvement. Experience inside a broken system, by itself, is not a solution.
If Republicans want to win, this primary must be taken seriously. From my perspective, it is not about choosing a nominee for governor who can energize the base. It is about selecting someone who can compete in a broader electorate that is frustrated and looking for change.
That requires a candidate who can speak beyond the base, not by abandoning principles, but by demonstrating competence and a credible plan to address Maine’s challenges. I believe Owen McCarthy offers that combination. He represents a shift away from managed decline and toward economic execution.
This is not just another primary. It is a decision about whether Republicans position themselves to win Maine or whether they remain trapped in a cycle of repeating the same strategies and expecting different outcomes.
If Republicans want to compete for Maine’s future, they cannot afford to nominate a candidate who only motivates part of the electorate. They need someone who expands it.
I believe Owen McCarthy is that candidate.
And if the goal is to win Maine, then the choice should be unmistakable
The only notable change in the top-seven of the Varsity Maine baseball poll is that Gorham now has eight first-place votes, two more than last week. The order of the seven teams is identical. In fact, the only change in the top-seven over the past three polls is the swap at the top after Gorham’s win over South Portland on May 19.
Furthermore, Gorham, South Portland, Oxford Hills, Cheverus, Bangor, Mt. Ararat and Fryeburg have been ranked in the top seven for four straight weeks, and six of those squads have been among the top seven in every poll this spring.
Meanwhile, Scarborough is ranked for the first time since May 5, and Ellsworth and Thornton swapped spots.
The Varsity Maine baseball poll is based on games played before June 2, 2026. The top 10 teams are voted on by the Varsity Maine staff, with first-place votes in parentheses, followed by total points.
1. Gorham (8) 89
2. South Portland 79
3. Oxford Hills (1) 75
4. Cheverus 55
5. Bangor 42
6. Mt. Ararat 41
7. Fryeburg Academy 30
8. Ellsworth 27
9. Thornton Academy 25
10. Scarborough 12
Also receiving votes: Washington Academy 8, Monmouth Academy 4, Cony 4, Leavitt 2, Falmouth 2.
Harbormasters are the municipal protectors of Maine’s 5,300-mile coastline, where a single day might include tasks as diverse as saving a sinking skiff, sorting a same-day mooring request and seizing undersized quahogs.
The job has existed for more than a century, but a buzzworthy political campaign and a heated lobster turf war have elevated this obscure government position to a new level of visibility in the public discourse, even if few people know what they really do.
“No day is the same,” says Daryen Granata, harbormaster and shellfish warden for Scarborough and Cape Elizabeth. “Ride in my truck or my boat for a week, and I can practically guarantee you that we wouldn’t do the same thing twice.”
Graham Platner used his $3,000-a-year gig as Sullivan’s former harbormaster to help frame his run for U.S. Senate. Meanwhile, South Thomaston hopes that hiring a harbormaster can resolve a dispute over dock access that some lobstermen say threatens their livelihoods.
Beyond the headlines, however, the duties of Maine’s 250 or so harbormasters vary from town to town. Some are highly paid police officers with arrest powers; others are seasonal mooring managers, like Platner was before he resigned in August, according to the town manager.
“Most people doing this job aren’t doing it for the money,” says Granata, who is vice president of the Maine Harbor Masters Association. “They’re doing it to be a steward, to be an ambassador of the harbor.”
Platner, who operates an oyster harvesting business, said he took the post to make sure the person hired to “run the show” had local waterfront experience. He said he was “bummed” that he had to give up the role due to his campaign schedule.
“There is something to be said about working-class folks coming together over the water despite their differences, all with the same goal in mind — to protect and preserve their way of life,” he said.
South Thomaston was one of Maine’s rare shoreline communities that had resisted hiring a harbormaster. Residents preferred to solve their own problems to keep their mooring prices artificially low. But that changed when a lobster turf war broke out.
The town is now advertising for a per-diem harbormaster to resolve the dispute.
A typical day for Granata might start by answering office emails at 7 a.m. and end with a 5 p.m. radio call about a boat sinking off Prouts Neck. In between, he juggles calls for illegal fishing, a shark sighting and a boat diesel spill, all while juggling walk-ins.
One of the most time-consuming parts of a harbormaster’s job, regardless of whether they are a police officer or a seasonal volunteer, is managing the vessel placements, or moorings, in their local harbor, Granata said.
Maine has more than 30,000 moorings. Small harbors may have a couple dozen, but larger ones can have up to 1,300. The harbormaster ensures each one is in the proper location with enough depth for a boat’s draft and enough anchor to hold it in place.
Unlike their counterparts in warmer climates, Maine harbormasters face a seasonal scramble. Because of winter ice, most of the state’s moorings must be pulled ashore in the fall and reset each spring to avoid being dragged around by moving ice.
The role is also one of public safety. Harbormasters coordinate with the U.S. Coast Guard and Maine Marine Patrol on search-and-rescue operations, monitor for navigational hazards, and inspect critical marine infrastructure like piers, docks and cranes.
In Portland, harbormaster Paul Plummer and his six seasonal deputies spend a lot of time keeping Portland Harbor safe — from marine debris that could cause accidents, from environmental threats, and from commercial-recreational boating conflicts.
His office escorts big commercial vessels through the busy harbor to protect the people in kayaks and sailboats that fill it up during the summer, many of whom are not familiar with Maine landmarks and water rules, Plummer said.
“We are out in the harbor and visit the islands every day,” Plummer said. “It’s not just to protect boats, but also the fragile working waterfront infrastructure. We have a lot of old piers and wharves that require a lot of care but are critical to our economy.”
Despite these differences, state law requires all harbormasters to get certification through the Maine Harbor Masters Association within a year of taking the job. The four-day certification must be renewed every three years.
Success in the role requires more than a technical knowledge of shackles and swivels, Granata said. Harbormasters must be able to shift from “swearing like a pirate” with a lobsterman to politely guiding a Vineyard Vines-clad tourist to a local luncheon spot.
“You can’t be down here being a stiff shirt,” Granata says. “This job is crazy, but it’s a privilege. Drinking straight from the hose, every day. You never get a break, not really, but you never get bored, either.”
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