We knew it had to happen. Faced with at least a $100 million shortfall in the budget, taxes were going to have to go up to balance the budget. While it appears that the highly visible cigarette tax increase will not pass, other less visible increases are in the budget. Here are two increases that we have found thus far.
1) The first comes to us via an Ellsworth American article by Victoria Wallack. She states that there will be “an increase in the amount of the sales tax the state will automatically collect for tax-free items purchased out-of-state or on the internet. That so-called use tax increases from .04 percent of a taxpayer’s adjusted gross income to .08 percent to raise $1 million more a year from those who don’t itemize what they purchase.”
2) The second comes to us via a recent AP article. The article states “About half of the funding for the final add-backs is to come from subjecting enterprises known as captive insurance companies–usually wholly owned subsidiary of a corporation not in the insurance business, according to state tax officials–to the state corporate income tax.” This appears to be a tax increase of around $10 million.
Stay tuned for more hidden taxes and fees in this budget as we distill the fine print . . .