Good morning from Augusta, where lawmakers are supposed to adjourn in less than a month, but not before they settle a looming conflict over a benignly titled “tax conformity” bill rolled out officially last week by Gov. Paul LePage.
We got an initial look at the Republican governor’s proposal — which would cost $88 million in 2018 and $115 million next year — early this month. Business groups are firmly behind it, but progressive groups are assailing it as a package tilted toward rich people.
What does it look like again? It’s Maine’s plan to conform to the federal tax changes passed by congressional Republicans last year. It would mirror it in part by replacing a personal exemption that was axed under the federal law with a new zero percent tax bracket and a non-refundable child and dependent tax credit. It would give businesses up-front deductions on certain purchases, lower Maine’s corporate income tax and double the estate tax exemption.
We’re already seeing familiar lines drawn on taxes — with a new twist. Business groups, including the Maine State Chamber of Commerce and the Maine restaurant and innkeepers’ association, support the bill. But the liberal Maine Center for Economic Policy has said the changes “go further” than simple conformity, relying on the state’s rosy increased revenue projections to “deliver tax breaks skewed to the wealthiest households.” Groups that worked to pass Maine’s Medicaid expansion referendum in 2017, which has been stalled by LePage so far, also want expansion funded with the new revenue.
The County is pleased to feature content from our sister company, Bangor Daily News. To read the rest of “LePage push to align Maine with Trump’s tax cuts won’t be an easy fix,” an article by contributing Bangor Daily News staff writerMichael Shepherd, please follow this link to the BDN online.
