With snow piles climbing higher and higher tri-town officials can only watch as the funds needed to keep roads clear drop lower with each new storm.

“It’s been a long winter,” said Rochester Highway Surveyor Jeff Eldridge, who also has around 70 miles to clear, plus town buildings and schools.

In Rochester, the town’s snow and ice removal budget has been at $68,000 for at least five years. Eldridge said it cost around $100,000 last winter to keep the roads clear.

Marion officials report that so far the town has spent more than $88,000 this year, exceeding the $50,000 allocated for snow removal.

In light of this year, Mattapoisett will reconsider how much to budget for snow removal.

“We’ve been working with the Finance Committee to get the snow budget to a realistic figure, so on an average winter we would have ample money in the snow budget,” said Mattapoisett Highway Surveyor Barry Denham.

To plow and sand the 60 to 70 miles of town roads, Mattapoisett appropriated $62,000 for this year, $10,000 more than last year. The extra funds are to cover overtime costs for town employees and part time laborers. Denham also apportions $22,000 for salt and sand.

Snowstorms in January and early February brought spending to between $48,000 and $50,000, said Denham.

Rochester Town Administrator Rich LaCamera said right now the town is $10,000 to $15,000 over budget. The snow and ice budget is a unique one for Massachusetts cities and towns. LaCamera explained that once that line item increases the state prohibits towns from reducing it in the future.

“If we were to raise the snow budget limit to, say, $100,000, then that amount has to be earmarked for snow removal every year going forward,” he said. “We’re trying to be conservative.”

A low number gives the town some flexibility when it is developing budgets, he said.

Snow costs are usually paid for with free cash, LaCamera said.

Following two snowfalls the week of Feb. 3, Rochester went over its snow and ice removal fund as did Marion. Mattapoisett is also nearing its budget.

That means deficit spending – the only budget item where Massachusetts state law permits a town to overreach for reasons of public safety. Deficit spending requires shifting money around at the end of the fiscal year or taking money from a free cash fund and asking voters to approve changes at Annual Town Meeting.

Marion Town Administrator Paul Dawson spoke with Selectmen about the inevitability of exceeding the snow and ice removal fund.

Like leadership in Mattapoisett and Rochester, Dawson said, “It’s very difficult to predict how much your actual expenses would be.”

The town exceeded its $50,000 appropriation and has spent more than $88,000 this season. The storms on the week of Feb. 3 alone cost the town $25,000, Dawson said. The most compact of the three towns, Marion has approximately 30 miles of public road to plow, done by the Department of Public Works staff. Contractors are only used in more severe storms, explained Dawson.

In 2009, Town Meeting voters OK’ed a $30,000 increase in the snow and ice fund, bringing it to the current $50,000.

“We bumped it up to try to approach something more realistic,” said Dawson. “You’re never going to guess the right number.” He said in 10 years the town consistently went into deficit spending, with that money coming out of the free cash fund.

Last year the town spent almost $117,000 on snow and ice removal, and compared to this time last year, Dawson said spending is less. “But anything can change at a moment’s notice,” he said.