It is amazing that Androscoggin officials are giving employees at the county building a $5,000 bonus from federal monies for doing their jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic (“Budget Committee wants say in how Androscoggin County spends federal relief money,” Sept. 9).

The monies could have been used to help curb the increase that every town and city in Androscoggin County will see this year. As a budget committee member in Greene, holding down the county’s budget increase would have helped keep our local taxes at a moderate level.

What makes the county employees more important than the food store employees who provided us with service to feed our families, the service people who took care of our medical and nursing care needs, and all of those who provided us with some support during these trying times? I do not see any of them getting bonuses for doing their jobs.

Steven Goulet, Greene