SENATOR CAIN SPONSORS TAX FAIRNESS AND TRANSPARENCY BILL

Bill would examine billions of dollars in tax revenue Maine forgoes every year

AUGUSTA – Senator Emily Ann Cain (D-Orono) is sponsoring a bill to incorporate a regular examination of Maine’s so-called “tax expenditures” into the state budget process. Tax expenditures refer to the revenue losses that result from the tax exemptions, credits, reimbursements, and incentives in Maine’s tax laws.

“This bill is about fairness and transparency,” said Senator Cain. “We should apply the same scrutiny to tax breaks that we do to spending on schools, roads, and health care. Tax breaks should require thorough and regular review to ensure that they deliver a return on investment to Maine people.”

Maine has over 250 tax expenditures. The bill would require financial information about the revenue losses that each of these tax expenditures entails to be included in formal budget documents, as well as the justification for each program’s existence.

The measure, LD 1488, “An Act To Create a Tax Expenditures Budget Process,” will receive a public hearing before the Taxation Committee in room 127 on the first floor of the State House at 10 a.m. tomorrow.

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