By Allison Carrier

Like many Scarborough natives, Lisa Saulle’s first job at Capt’n Bob’s Grove (now Bayley’s Seafood) was a rite of passage that brought with it fond memories and foundational skills. Today, as the Town’s Tax Collector, Deputy Treasurer, and Revenue Office Manager, her work looks very different than it did as a teen, but the draw to customer service has remained a key component of her career.

The Revenue office is where you go to pay your taxes, register or renew a vehicle or trailer, get a hunting or fishing license, and more. Lisa manages the team of five who work at the counter.

Lisa arrives at Town Hall early, around 6:45 a.m., to get the office ready for staff to start when doors open at 7:00 a.m. She sets up the cash drawers and turns everything on, then goes to her office to check emails, see if anyone made web payments, and process the mail. The Finance department receives payments for property taxes, parking tickets, and receipts for other departments. Money received by all departments (such as Police, Fire, Clerk’s office, Community Services, and Public Works) comes to Finance, where it is processed and accounted for. For Lisa, this is one of the benefits to her job—the level of interaction she has with other departments in a day.

Behind the scenes, their office also handles the general billing for all departments, processes rescue billing collections, and fields all types of phone calls and emails from the public. The office also processes weekly reports for the Bureau of Motor Vehicles and monthly reports for the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. Tax collection involves sending tax bills twice per year, processing payments, running reports on overdue taxes and undergoing a lien process which includes detailed research on the Cumberland County Registry of Deeds website. “There are very few times in a year that are not busy,” Lisa says.

Some aspects of her work are specialized and research-driven. She takes requests from mortgage, title, and tax service companies regarding specific properties, and handles past-due tax situations. There is also a lot of reporting and comparing reports to cross-check information. “Being thorough is one of the most important skills,” says Lisa.

Lisa had an early career in retail and retail management. After sixteen years and the birth of her daughter, Abbie, she was ready for a change with more regular hours. There was an opening for an Accounts Payable Clerk at the Town, a new field for her but still working with the public. That was 24 years ago. Since then, the structure of the Finance department has changed, and so have her responsibilities—she learned how to handle registrations and tax payments working on the counter, then as the Excise Agent and Inland Fisheries Agent, overseeing all inventory that comes from the State (stickers, license plates, and weekly reporting). Lisa became the Tax Collector in 2017, learning as she went and growing her confidence in the new position.

A challenging feat when she first began was her limited computer experience. The Finance department’s software programs are unique and continually upgrading. Lisa takes classes through the Maine Municipal Association to maintain her Tax Collector Certification and continue developing professionally.

Lisa finds that her intentions from the start in the morning aren’t usually what it ends up as by the end of the day. It’s what keeps her job interesting, but what she most enjoys about her work is the great people she’s met through the years. One older gentleman, who often met with her to discuss taxes or whatever brought him into the Town Hall, started bringing her art prints that he created of various Scarborough landmarks and Maine scenery, each signed with a message: “Thank you for your help,” or, “The Town is lucky to have you.” She started framing them and now they adorn her office walls.

Lisa still lives in Scarborough with her husband of 26 years, Mike. They live in her grandmother’s former house, next door to the one she grew up in. Besides her husband and daughter, Lisa has a “bonus” stepdaughter Katie, son-in-law Adam, five-year-old grandson Jack, four cats, and a dog. She loves to cook, garden, and care for her family. She got a small greenhouse last year and loves to grow both flowers and vegetables that she can use in the kitchen. She has created a life full of family and simple joys that complements her career in public service for her hometown of Scarborough.

Allison Carrier is Marketing and Communications Manager for the Town of Scarborough.

(Photo courtesy of Town of Scarborough)