Strange bedfellows fight tax reform
The Maine Green Independent Party has joined the Maine Republican Party in the latter's attempt to repeal tax reforms passed in the last legislative session.
Green party leaders announced yesterday that they have joined the GOP's efforts to create a people's veto of the tax package, which Greens consider regressive and would hurt lower-income Mainers, according to the Portland Press Herald. In particular, they objected to the elimination of state income-tax brackets and new sales taxes on services such as car repairs.
The Greens intend to focus their signature-gathering efforts in Portland, and other locales where the GOP doesn't have a strong base, the paper reported.
Backers of the reform say restructuring will help Mainers, stabilize the state's revenue streams and create a more progressive tax system. An analysis by Maine Revenue Services concluded that 87% of Maine's 665,000 income tax-paying households would see their overall tax burden decrease, according to the Press Herald.
For more on the business community's response to the tax reform package, read "Taxable interest," from the July 13 issue of Mainebiz.
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