OXFORD — With the latest property tax bills delivered to Oxford residents, about 30 people dropped by the town office’s conference room Thursday to express how they felt about the 37% increase.

Reactions from several residents who spoke ranged from suggestions to criticisms leveled against the Select Board.

The first speaker was Joyce Reiner, now a seasonal resident of Oxford. She remarked that homeowners in town might have an easier time paying their bills if they were due quarterly instead of twice a year.

Another fulltime resident who is retired, seconded Reiner’s sentiment.

“I am on social security and a fixed income,” she said. “I thought it would take two-thirds of my check this month. It took the whole thing, and I had to borrow money.”

She added that seniors should pay a lower percentage of tax revenue used for funding education, saying that a third of her taxes go to schools.

Terry Briggs, who is the current owner and seasonal resident of property purchased by his grandfather in the 1940s, also had words for town leaders. “You must be going for the record (in Maine) as far as property taxes. I’ve never seen it, at this rate, and I am appalled. I’m actually struggling for adjectives to describe how you guys can sit there and hit us with a 37% tax increase.”

Select Board Chairman Floyd Thayer took exception to five elected representatives being singled out as solely responsible for Oxford’s budget, reminding Briggs that the budget is produced by a committee and the selectmen’s role is to make recommendations about spending to the citizens who vote on budgets at annual town meetings.

About 80 residents participated in Oxford’s most recently annual town meeting in June, on par with other meetings over the last several years.

Briggs added that in his experience in other towns, education costs account for about 60% of total tax bills, but in Oxford it is town spending that makes up 60% of property owners’ tax burdens. He also pointed out that Oxford benefits from Oxford Casino and Oxford Plains Speedway, assets that other towns make do without.

Lois Pike, a senior resident of the community, offered a different perspective.

“A lot of us did that program last year, where our tax bill stayed the same,” she said, referring to the Property Tax Stabilization Program that was intended to provide protection to Maine seniors. “This was the first time, in my age group, we got to see the reevaluation, which is a big part of the problem.

“Just be grateful all those years we didn’t have to pay them,” she said, acknowledging that Oxford had not had a townwide property reassessment for years preceding last year’s reevaluation.

Selectperson Sharon Jackson explained to attendees in detail how recent town expenditures have been affected by Oxford’s capital investment plans during previous years. Selectman Caldwell Jackson also provided context on how businesses like Oxford Casino have placed additional demand on town services that other communities do not have.