AUGUSTA — The state of Maine has mailed erroneous tax warnings to 1,000 Maine residents, demanding immediate payment for income taxes, penalties and interest. The letters threatened to garnish recipients’ wages or seize of their property if payments were not made. David Heidrich from the Department of Administrative and Financial Services tells the Portland Press […]
taxes
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Task force drops proposed amusement tax, submits new plan targeting business tax breaks
AUGUSTA — The panel charged with reducing or eliminating $40 million in tax breaks to prevent further cuts to revenue sharing put forward a plan Monday that may fall short of meeting that goal. Gone from the plan are proposals floated last week to tax entertainment, recreation and personal care services, which were deemed too […]
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Posted inAdvertiser Democrat, Oxford Hills
Quarterly taxes keep Paris solvent
PARIS — Six months ago, voters approved a change in the town’s tax collection, shifting from biannual to quarterly payment in an effort to improve the town’s cash flow. So far, the plan appears to have worked. According to Town Manager Amy Bernard, the town has roughly $1.3 million in cash on hand, enough to keep […]
Posted inLetters
E. Field: Wrong priorities
Republicans in the House of Representatives have passed a proposed cut of $40 billion to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (food stamps) covering the next 10 years, cuts that would affect about 4 million working Americans, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. The same bill gives huge subsidies to billionaire farmers. According […]
Posted inBusiness, sj-web
Bath residents organize effort to oppose BIW tax breaks
BATH — Some Bath residents object to a proposed tax rebate for a major expansion of Bath Iron Works, saying the subsidy is corporate welfare and BIW will expand whether or not it gets a tax break. BIW officials say if the proposed tax break is denied, they might not be able to expand, putting […]
Posted insj-web
Former N.H. House Speaker says Maine fell behind because of taxes
SOUTH PORTLAND — Former New Hampshire House Speaker William O’Brien told a South Portland audience Friday afternoon Maine lost its economic edge over his state after World War II, when it added cumbersome taxes and watched as the Granite State passed it by. O’Brien’s appearance as the keynote speaker for the conservative Maine Heritage Policy […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Chapter 4: LePage targets the income tax rate
The left, the right and just about everyone in-between has long agreed on one thing about Maine’s taxes — the income tax had to be fixed. The main problem with it was that it treated working people like they were rich. The top 8.5 percent tax rate kicked in at an income level of $19,500. […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Maine tax climate improves in Tax Foundation ranking
The Washington, D.C.-based Tax Foundation ranked all 50 states for its 2014 State Business Tax Climate Index, which synthesizes data on more than 100 tax provisions in each state into an easy-to-use index score. Maine’s 29th ranking is a slight improvement from the foundation’s 2013 report, released last October, in which the state ranked 30th. Maine’s overall […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Task force seeks an extra $40 million in Maine’s tax code
AUGUSTA — A task force of lawmakers, business interests, economists and tax experts continued Monday its work toward finding $40 million in savings by December, as required by the biennial budget the Democrat-led Legislature approved over the protests of Republican Gov. Paul LePage. If the Tax Expenditure Review Task Force cannot identify those savings, the […]
Posted inBusiness, sj-web
New, temporary taxes take affect today
AUGUSTA — Visitors and residents alike will see a small uptick in what they pay tableside and on some items at the cash register, as temporary increases to the sales and lodging taxes take effect statewide Tuesday. The increase, which will be seen in the bills at shops, restaurants and hotels, is an effort to offset […]