A bipartisan group of lawmakers have introduced a bill that aims to provide property tax relief to Maine homeowners, as well as convene a study to determine the best path forward to reduce the property tax burden for Mainers going forward.
LD 1770 — an emergency bill titled An Act to Provide Immediate and Long-term Property Tax Relief to Maine Households — would increase the Property Tax Fairness Credit and establish the Real Estate Property Tax Relief Task Force.
The Task Force would consist of 13 voting members and at least two non-voting members, including economic experts, someone to represent low-income residents, and representatives of both large and small municipalities.
These members would be appointed by a combination of several elected officials, including the President of the Senate, Speaker of the House, and the Governor.
Under this bill, the Task Force would be responsible for determining the “source of problems with the current system of property taxation, who is most negatively affected by the current system of property taxation, and how those persons are negatively affected.”
To do this, the Task Force would need to contract with an entity to provide research and analytical support.
The proposed legislation then goes on to more explicitly detail what exactly the Task Force would need to investigate and what questions it would be required to answer.
For example, the Task Force would need to see how Maine stacks up against the rest of the country, explore potential amendments to the Maine Constitution, and develop “targeted support” for long-time homeowners looking to age in place, among other things.
By December 15, 2025, the Task Force would need to submit a report detailing its findings and recommendations.
In addition to this, LD 1770 looks to increase the Property Tax Fairness Credit, which allows homeowners to claim a credit on their tax returns based on a number of criteria, including their income and filing status.
Based on the amount paid in property taxes during a given year, homeowners are eligible to receive a maximum of $1,500. Mainers 65 and older, however, are able to get a refund of up to $2,000 as of the 2024 tax year.
Beginning this year, this credit would be increased to $2,000 for homeowners younger than 65 and to $2,500 for those over the age of 65.
Because this legislation is currently drafted as an emergency bill, it has the potential to take immediate effect should it receive support from at least two-thirds of lawmakers in both the House and the Senate.
This bill was sponsored by Senate President Mattie Daughtry (D-Cumberland) and cosponsored by Speaker of the House Ryan D. Fecteau (D-Biddeford), Sen. Joe Baldacci (D-Penobscot), Sen. Bruce Bickford (R-Androscoggin), Sen. Anne Carney (D-Cumberland), Sen. Jim Libby (R-Cumberland), Sen. Teresa Pierce (D-Cumberland), Senate Minority Leader Trey Stewart (R-Aroostook), Rep. Daniel J. Ankeles (D-Brunswick), and Rep. Ann Higgins Matlack (D-St. George).
[RELATED: Bipartisan Bill Increasing Maine’s Property Tax Fairness Credit Introduced in Augusta]
This, however, is not the only bill currently up for consideration that looks to increase the value of the Property Tax Fairness Credit.
LD 1665, sponsored by Sen. Anne Carney (D-Cumberland), seeks to raise the value of the base benefit in order to allow more Maine homeowners to claim a larger Property Tax Fairness credit on their tax returns.
The value of the Property Tax Fairness Credit is calculated by determining the degree to which the statutory “base benefit” exceeds four percent of a homeowner’s annual income.
The “base benefit” refers to a homeowner’s property tax bill in a given year up to a certain amount.
Since 2018, state law has had the base benefit at $2,050 for individuals, $2,650 for heads of household or joint filers, $3,250 for heads of household or joint filers eligible for the child tax credit, and $4,000 for those over the age of 65.
The bill introduced by Sen. Carney and cosponsored by a bipartisan group of lawmakers would provide a small boost to all of these tiers, as well as adjust who qualifies for the tiers themselves.
Under this proposal, individuals would have a base benefit of $2,450, $3,200 for joint filers, $3,250 for heads of household or joint filers with one qualifying child or dependent, $4,250 for heads of household or joint filers with more than one qualifying child or dependent, and $4,250 for those 65 and older.
Public hearings have not been scheduled for either LD 1770 or LD 1665, but the Taxation Committee can be expected to announce them soon.
The best path forward are is to vote for cuts to your town budget. No shifting of taxes to others, get out and vote do not let government do your job.
Easiest way to beat this is move away from Despicable Maine. Worked for me.
How about stop spending money on woke junk? No more climate hoax stuff. It’s not like you can control the weather or tides.
No more money for illegals and non citizens. No housing, no free food, no 300 ESL teachers in schools, no petty cash to spend at Macy’s, no cars, no drivers licenses.
Again, we never, ever see any talk of cutting spending.
Just stupid shell games shifting where they take our money from.