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2019 Op. Me. Att'y Gen. 1 (2019)

handle is hein.sag/sagme2019 and id is 1 raw text is: i AR4 Hoon .I2 E r 2 (20T94 70T A ARON M. F 27940 AT TORNEY GENERAL 5 r 0 Tit 2071 822 06 STATE E o MAINL Fu- 4 207 822A0259 OmFiCE Oi THEi ATTORNEY GENEIW 14N N si TEL (207) 626-8800 eA,Wt . MA 04736 TTY USERS CALL MAINE RELAY 7 STAT HOUSE STATN T ,2, 49kT AUGUSTA, MAINE 04333-0006 Fu (207> 496 329f March 19, 2019 BY HAND-DELIVERY Senator Matthew Pouliot 3 State House Station Augusta, ME 04333-0003 RE LD 824, An Act to Allow a Municipality to Opt Out of Collecting Personal Property and Business Equipment Taxes Dear Senator Pouliot: You have asked whether our office has any concerns regarding the constitutionality of LD 824. An Act to Allow a Municipality to Opt Out of Collecting Personal Property and Business Equipment Taxes, particularly with regard to Article IX, Sections 8 and 9 of the Maine Constitution. LD 824 would allow each municipality in the State to adopt an ordinance to exempt personal property from municipal assessment and collection of tax. Any exemption so adopted by a municipality under the bill must be uniform and include all personal property including business equipment. Based on our analysis of the bill and relevant Law Court decisions, we have significant concerns about the constitutionality of LD 82. Our concerns with LD 824 are consistent with three prior opinions of this office, in which we concluded that the Legislature may not delegate to all municipalities the power to determine property tax exemptions. See Op. Me. Att'y Gen. (Feb. 2, 1977); Op. Me. Att'y Gen. 79-74 (April 23, 1979); and Op. Me. Att'y Gen. 81-35 (April 7, 1981). (opinions enclosed). Article IX, Section 8. The central legal problem presented by LD 824 results from its conflict with the requirements of Article IX, Section 8 of the Maine Constitution. Section 8 requires in pertinent part: All taxes upon real and personal estate, assessed by authority of this State, shall be apportioned and assessed equally according to the just value thereof The Law Court has described this provision as establishing two requirements for a valid property tax: a valuation requirement and an apportionment requirement. Eastler v. State Tax Assessor, 499 A.2d 921, 924 (Me. 1985); see also Opinion of the Justices, 2004 ME 50, 850 A.2d 1145; Delogu v. City ofPortland, 2004 ME 18, 843 A.2d 33.

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