A Foster Township supervisor write-in candidate and a former supervisor slammed the current board on Monday about the amount of money –— more than $2 million — allegedly stashed away in the sewer budget.

At the supervisors meeting, Brandon Whittemore, who is running as a write-in candidate in the November general election, said the township property owners and residents, under the 2017 budget, will pay about $991,000 in sewer fees a year, and the township will pay about $314,000 to the Bradford Sanitary Authority.

He said he wants to see a sewer connection rebate or refund and the sewer rate reduced from the current $45 monthly fee to something reasonable. In the past, the rate had been $24 a month, said former township supervisor Jim Connelly Jr.

To be hooked up to the sewer system, property owners had to pay a $2,055 hook-in fee for the most-recent sewer extension work.

“But they weren’t raised to $45 to have $2.5 million in the sewer fund,” Connelly said. “In 2011, we only had $600,000 in the sewer fund and we took $300,000 of the balance and we paid off that loan and saved $14,400 a year.”

In 2016, he said, the township made principal payments of $214,450 and interest of $33,841 for a sewer project loan.

Connelly said the sewer bills were raised to $45 a month to pay off debt from sewer system work. He recommended paying double on the township’s debt.

Budget review is now underway, supervisor Chairman George Hocker said.

“We’re looking to see what we can get with the 2,000 customers we have on it,” he said. “We’re roughly under 2,000 right now. In the past you have never had any infrastructure plan at all to take care of the sewer lines.”

With the sewer budget, Hocker said one has to look at what is “putting out on infrastructure,” as well as wages. He also said a portion of the money in the sewer budget would be put toward the debt. The budget will clearly show where the money is going, he said.

Connelly questioned if the township would be holding a budget session this year.

“The budget is for the supervisors to work it out. The public’s allowed to sit (in). But it’s not a question and answer (session),” Hocker said.

Connelly, citing an Era story, reported that at an October meeting a township official said she did not know the figures for the police budget.

“Can I ask you something? How many times does stuff get misprinted in The Bradford Era?” Hocker said.

Connelly said, “I don’t pick on The Bradford Era. I respect The Bradford Era.”

Also at the meeting, supervisors approved a resolution relating to the proposed inter-municipal transfer of a restaurant liquor license to Sheetz on the corner of East Main Street and Bolivar Drive on the Bradford Mall property. The store opened in late 2016.

In other business, the supervisors accepted the resignation of Roland Ackley Jr. The supervisors approved advertising, interviewing and hiring a sewer/road department employee before its October meeting.

In his report, Police Chief Tom Munn reported that the department handled 237 complaints, of which 12 involved motor vehicles for August. He also reported that officers issued 39 citations and conducted 10 criminal investigations last month.

The next township supervisors meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. Oct. 2 at the municipal building on East Main Street.