The Fredonia Board of Trustees was belittled by at least one speaker during public hearings Monday on the village’s proposed budget.

The hearings were marred by technical difficulties with the Fredonia Access broadcast. Only a small part of Mark Twichell’s remarks made it on air, then the screen went black after Bob Scott said he was there for a hearing on raising the water usage “base rate.”

A message then appeared on screen stating that the broadcast would not happen due to technical difficulties. However, the broadcast resumed during the trustees’ regularly scheduled Monday workshop.

The other hearings were on Fredonia’s proposed 2026-27 budget with its 4% tax hike, and a local law allowing the village to override the state’s cap on tax raises. The water rate increase also requires a local law, so it also needed a public hearing.

Twichell said he “told the board that they are incapable of managing the taxpayers’ money, as demonstrated by this year’s 4% tax increase on top of last year’s 56% increase.”

He offered “examples of their fiscal incompetence. They gave raises again this year to department heads. They failed to employ an arbitrator in approving a very expensive firemen’s union contract which is now responsible for half of the 4% increase. In the Pomfret-Portland-Dunkirk sewer contract they gave 60% discounts to non-village residents who use the village sewer treatment plant, while at the same time discussing necessary and expensive upgrades at the sewer plant for which outside users are not contributing.”

Twichell is a supporter of the “Save Our Reservoir” movement and made sure to criticize Fredonia’s plans to acquire water from the North County Water District.

“They are pressing forward with a water ‘improvement’ plan which will cost the village $52 million over 30 years, while raising rates per 1,000 gallons to a level which is four times greater than current rates, or $28 per thousand,” Twichell said. He quoted figures from an analysis by former village Treasurer James Sedota which is touted by Save Our Reservoir.

Twichell added, “They raised the flat rate for water by $10 per quarter while failing to properly administer water treatment plant operators whose errors have resulted in frequent boil orders.”

Fredonia’s trustees appear set to vote on passing the 2026-27 budget at their next meeting Monday.