BANGOR — Last winter, it looked as though city officials couldn’t wait to drop Coregis Insurance, the Chicago-based company that kept them and Bangor residents waiting for decisions on insurance claims. But now, two weeks before the city’s insurance policy is up for renewal, Coregis seems to have its act together.

On Monday, the finance committee gave the company a tentative thumbs-up, and recommended renewal of the policy for property and casualty insurance.

“Their attitude has changed. The response has been dramatically improved,” Charles Mitchell told the finance committee Monday. Mitchell, the city’s claims consultant, said he has been “on the phone extensively since Friday’s storm,” and Coregis representatives have been much more responsive.

“I guess I’d recommend we stay with them,” Mitchell told the committee.

In January, the city was having trouble getting the company to pay sewer claims caused by tree roots invading the lines. Coregis paid one of six claims, but not the rest. The city decided to pay the others, and eventually was reimbursed by the insurance company.

There were more complaints in March about delays in claims after flooding damaged 60 homes in February.

Mitchell is hoping the delays are over. Coregis has provided a toll-free number and a direct fax line now, he said, and the company also is planning to establish a claims office in the state this fall.

The City Council will vote at next Monday’s regular meeting on whether to renew the policy, and councilors said they would keep an eye on how responsive the company is this week.

Also Monday, the council held a brief budget workshop to receive information requested at last Thursday’s session. The council is due to vote next Monday on a budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1.

Administration Director Robert Farrar presented the council with information Councilor Christopher Popper had requested on the cost savings if the proposed cost-of-living adjustment were given only to employees making less than $35,000 a year.

Farrar told the council that savings would be realized in departments funded by the tax-supported General Fund, but not in those where wages are paid from a self-supporting enterprise fund such as the airport.

City Manager Edward Barrett has included a 3 percent wage increase in the budget. The tax rate he proposed last Thursday was $23 per $1,000 in valuation, down 15 cents from last year’s rate of $23.15.

Councilors continued their discussion of a proposal to acquire a bomb-detecting dog for Bangor International Airport, a topic raised last Thursday by Bangor Police Chief Randy Harriman.

Harriman had told the council that the Federal Aviation Administration was willing to purchase and train two dogs if the city would take care of them. Harriman was interested in acquiring one dog if the airport could afford to hire a police officer to work with the dog, because dogs are much better at finding bombs than people are.

BIA Director Robert Ziegelaar said Monday that his most recent conversation with the FAA had led him to believe there also would be a $90,000 price tag to the project. He questioned whether it would be a good idea to have the dogs if that meant the FAA would send planes with bomb threats to Bangor.