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May 5, 2009

Panel considers extracted water tax

By The Mainebiz News Staff

Lawmakers will consider a penny-a-gallon tax on bottled water today that Poland Spring has said would cost the company $7 million a year.

The Taxation Committee is holding a public hearing on the bill, which would apply to bottlers that extract more than 1 million gallons annually and package water in containers of 5 gallons or less, WGAN reported. Revenue from the tax would benefit water quality protection and provide tax relief for Maine residents and municipalities where water is extracted. Poland Spring, a subsidiary of Nestle Waters North America, says the tax would cost it 20% of its annual payroll and put Maine jobs at risk, the Portland Press Herald reported. The company employs 800 people in Maine.

Poland Spring is facing a number of water measures, including other bills before the Natural Resources Committee today that include a proposal to create a commission to study the implications of groundwater extraction and two bills to make groundwater a resource in the public trust, as is surface water. On Wednesday, the State and Local Government Committee will consider legislation that would allow municipalities to deny corporations their constitutional rights, the paper reported.

For more on Poland Spring's presence in Maine, read "Tapping in."


From James Pelsor

Alaska has a separation tax on oil, as do most countries. While water is indeed a more common natural resource, in this case it is located in and extracted from Maine. A separation tax is only right given the impact of trucking etc on the public infrastructure of Maine. 

When one pays close to a dollar a pop for a 20oz. bottle of water essentially tapped for free, and compares it to $2 per gallon for gasoline which travels thousands of miles while being heavily refined and taxed, it can only be assumed that there is plenty of profit margin built into Poland Springs bottom line. 

Its sophistry to compare the total of amount of tax to their total payroll in Maine. This only goes to prove how little this natural resource costs to process, bottle, market and ship. 

Time for Nestle to pay up just a little to the State of Maine.

From Harry Mattachine

Nestle Waters North America made $4 Billion in 2007. Seven million at $0.01 per gallon isn't even a drop in their fleet of revenue tank trucks.  

From Ted Ross

I love how our well paid lawmakers in Augusta think that creating a new tax will help to provide tax relief to Maine Residents.  

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