TREE HARVEST PLANS REMAIN CLOSED TO PUBLIC
Republican lawmakers reject public disclosure of forest plan for tax
AUGUSTA—Republican lawmakers rejected an attempt to make public the Forest Management and Harvest Plan required by property owners enrolled in Maine’s Tree Growth Tax law. During the debate on LD 1470, “An Act to Ensure Harvesting of Timber on Land Taxed Under the Maine Tree Growth Tax Law,” Senator Troy Jackson of Allagash offered an amendment which would have prospectively required new and updated harvest plans to be filed with the municipality’s assessor’s office.
“As the law stands, these plans are secret and unenforceable. There’s no way to know if people are adhering to the law or if it’s being used as a shelter from paying their fair share of taxes,” said Sen. Jackson. “The people of Maine should know how their tax payer dollars are being spent.”
Under current law, harvest plans, are not subject to examination by the Department of Conservation or the Maine Revenue Service.
Sen. Jackson’s amendment also addressed concerns raised by some people about the public disclosure of harvest plans that include proprietary information. Under Jackson’s amendment, harvest plans that include proprietary information relating to business dealings, would not have to disclose that specific information information. Jackson’s amendment was indefinitely postponed by the Republican-majority.
“We’re just looking for transparency here,” said Jackson. “After listening to concerns, this amendment gets to the heart of the matter, I’m not clear what’s holding this back.”
LD 1470, as passed, authorizes the Bureau of Forestry within the Department of Conservation to conduct periodic random sampling of land enrolled under the Maine Tree Growth Tax law.
During the floor debate, Jackson, who also works as a logger, noted that the town he lives in has 72,000 acres in tree growth—one of the highest in the state.
A 2009 report by the Maine Forest Service, identified State Treasurer Bruce Poliquin’s property as an example of a potential misuse. In the past, Sen. Jackson raised concerns about Poliquin’s use of Maine’s Tree Growth Tax law. Poliquin owns more than 12 acres of coastal property—10.3 of which is enrolled in the state’s tax break program—totaling $500,000 in annual tax savings. On February 2, Jackson sent a letter to State Treasurer Bruce Poliquin requesting that Poliquin publicly disclose his harvest plan. Poliquin did not respond and has since requested to withdraw his property from the Maine Tree Growth Tax law with the intention to transfer it in to Maine’s Open Space program—another tax abatement program.