Its purchase of the trucks occurred entirely outside of Maine. The invoices disclose that AMI purchased the trucks and truck parts from vendors who were not located in Maine and took delivery of the trucks in Massachusetts. Because title to the trucks passed outside of Maine, Maine sales tax provisions do not apply to the transaction. Because AMI incurred no Maine sales tax liability when it purchased the vehicles, it must have paid sales tax for some other reason. Cozy Harbor contends that, even if the sale occurred entirely outside of Maine, the vehicles were purchased for use in Maine, and AMI was liable for Maine's use tax.
Maine imposes a tax on tangible property purchased outside the state that is used in the state.
Bureau of Taxation Reg. Between 1985 and the time the parties entered into the lease, however, TRAC leases were not considered bona fide leases for Maine sales tax purposes. See Bureau of Taxation, General Information Bulletin, No. 86, September 19, 1997. The characterization of a TRAC lease as a retail sale is important to the result in this litigation. First, it indicates that AMI did not incur tax liability when it purchased the vehicles, even if the purchase had occurred in Maine because Maine's sales tax does not apply to sales of tangible property when the buyer intends to resell the property.