AUGUSTA — The state sales tax increased Tuesday – the result of the state budget passed by the 126th Maine State Legislature, but vetoed by Governor Paul R. LePage earlier this summer.
Effective Oct. 1, the state sales tax rate increased from 5 percent to 5.5 percent on all taxable goods, and the 7 percent tax rate will jump to 8 percent on liquor and meals at restaurants and rentals of lodging.
Three simple examples of the tax increases include:
• $50 dinner — old tax, $3.50; new tax, $4.
• $300 TV — old tax, $15; new tax, $16.50.
• $15,000 car — old tax, $750; new tax, $825.
Governor LePage released a video after the Legislature overrode his veto of the budget. In the five-minute video, the Governor shares his thoughts about how higher taxes will affect Mainers and condemns decreased funding to programs like Jobs for Maine Graduates, which has already suffered from the loss of federal funding.
Rather than making the difficult decisions to prevent tax increases on hard-working Mainers, the Legislature even included tax increases for extended service contracts on trucks and group residential services for persons with brain injuries.
“When I submitted a balanced budget, I knew there would be areas of concern for many legislators,” said the Governor. “That is why we had nearly six months to work together and make the hard decisions while still protecting our most vulnerable. It was an opportunity for our State to do something great, to make real changes to lower the cost of living for Mainers. Unfortunately, it was an opportunity missed.”
