An Act To Assist Brascan, the Successor to Great Northern Paper, in Paying the Property Taxes Due to the Towns of Millinocket and East Millinocket
Maine Legislature, Session 121, LD 1575
Committee: Taxation
Sponsors: STANLEY, LEMOINE, CATHCART, NASS, CLARK, CLOUGH, DUPREY, FLETCHER

Legislative Document 
No.1S7S 
S.P.535 
In Senate, April 14, 2003 
An Act To Assist Brascan, the Successor to Great Northern Paper, 
in Paying the Property Taxes Due to the Towns of Millinocket and 
East Millinocket 
(EMERGENCY) 
Reference to the Committee on Taxation suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Senator STANLEY of Penobscot. (GOVERNOR'S BILL) 
Cosponsored by Representative LEMOINE of Old Orchard Beach and 
JOY J. O'BRIEN 
Secretary of the Senate 
Senators: CATHCART of Penobscot, NASS of York, Representatives: CLARK of Millinocket, 
CLOUGH of Scarborough, DUPREY of Medway, FLETCHER of Winslow, McCORMICK of 
West Gardiner. 
Printed on recycled paper 
Emergency preamble. Whereas, Acts of the Legislature do not 
become effective until 90 days after adjournment unless enacted 
as emergencies; and 
Whereas, Great Northern Paper, Inc., the owner of 2 large 
paper mills in the towns of Millinocket and East Millinocket, is 
currently in bankruptcy; and 
Whereas, the bankruptcy of Great Northern Paper, Inc., is 
causing substantial economic hardship to the towns of Millinocket 
and East Millinocket, to the employees and suppliers of Great 
Northern Paper, Inc., and to the economy of the region; and 
Whereas, part of the economic hardship occasioned by the 
insolvency of Great Northern Paper, Inc., is that $7.8 million of 
property 
taxes 
due 
to 
the 
towns 
of 
Millinocket 
and 
East 
Millinocket for the 2002-03 property tax year have not been paid, 
and the assets of the bankrupt estate will not be sufficient to 
pay the taxes; and 
Whereas, Brascan Corporation, or its designee, has agreed to 
purchase the mills and has also offered to alleviate the hardship 
by paying the property taxes, and these payments will be made, in 
part, by applying loan proceeds secured by Business Equipment Tax 
Reimbursement program payments related to the mills; and 
Whereas, the Business Equipment Tax Reimbursement program 
payments are not payable by the State until after August 1, 2004, 
which will delay the payment of taxes to the towns, 
and this 
delay can be alleviated by this Act; and 
Whereas, 
in 
order 
to 
facilitate 
the 
foregoing, 
this 
legislation must be enacted prior to the purchase of the assets 
of Great Northern Paper, Inc. by Brascan Corporation; and 
Whereas, in the judgment of the Legislature, these facts 
create an emergency within the meaning of the Constitution of 
Maine 
and 
require 
the 
following 
legislation 
as 
immediately 
necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health and 
safety; now, therefore, 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. Definitions. 
As used in this Act, unless the context 
otherwise 
indicates, 
the 
following 
terms 
have 
the 
following 
meanings. 
1. 
"Acquiring business" 
means 
a 
business that acquires 
substantially all of the assets of Great Northern Paper, Inc. 
2. 
"Authority" means the Finance Authority of Maine. 
3. 
"BETR" means the Business Equipment Tax Reimbursement 
program established under the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 36, 
chapter 915. 
4. 
"Bureau" 
means 
the Department of Administrative 
and 
Financial Services, Bureau of Revenue Services. 
5. 
"Great Northern" 
means 
Great Northern 
Paper, 
Inc., 
Chapter 11 Debtor in Possession. 
6. 
"Millinocket 
and 
East 
Millinocket 
mills 
BETR 
reimbursement" 
means 
the 
amount 
of 
the 
BETR 
reimbursement 
relating to 
the 
2nd 
installment of property taxes 
assessed 
against Great Northern by Millinocket and East Millinocket for 
the 2002-03 property tax year, as certified by the bureau. 
Sec. 2. Millinocket and East Millinocket BETR reimbursement loan 
program. 
Upon purchase by a business of substantially all of 
the assets of Great Northern, the authority shall provide a loan 
to the acquiring business in the amount of the Millinocket and 
East Millinocket mills BETR 
reimbursement, 
but not to exceed 
$1,550,000, on the following terms and conditions. 
1. 
The loan must be made at the closing of the purchase of 
the Great Northern assets by the acquiring business. 
2. 
The loan proceeds must be used to pay property taxes due 
the Town of Millinocket or the Town of East Millinocket for the 
2002-03 property tax year at the closing of the purchase of the 
assets of Great Northern. 
3. 
Interest may not be charged on the loan. 
The authority 
may 
charge an origination fee not to exceed 
l~ of the loan 
amount. 
The loan terms must provide for repayment at the time 
the 
acqul.rl.ng 
business 
receives 
the 
Millinocket 
and 
East 
Millinocket mills BETR reimbursement. 
4. 
Prior to the closing of the purchase of the assets of 
Great Northern, the bureau shall certify to the authority the 
amount 
of 
the 
Millinocket 
and 
East 
Millinocket mills 
BETR 
reimbursement. 
Upon 
request 
by 
the 
acquiring business, 
the 
bureau 
shall 
process 
and 
deliver 
this 
certificate 
to 
the 
authority prior to closing. 
5. 
The 
bureau 
shall 
pay 
the 
Millinocket 
and 
East 
Millinocket mills BETR reimbursement up to the amount of the loan 
to the acquiring business and the authority as copayees. 
Any 
amount 
of 
Millinocket 
and 
East 
Millinocket 
mills 
BETR 
reimbursement in excess of the loan must be paid to the acquiring 
business. 
6. 
The authority may establish prudent terms and conditions 
for the loan, including a first lien on the Millinocket and East 
Millinocket mills BETR reimbursement. 
Sec. 3. Source of fund. 
Notwithstanding any other provlslon of 
law to the contrary, the loan described in section 2 may be made 
by the authority out of the 
Economic 
Recovery 
Program 
Fund 
established in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 10, 
section 
1023-1. 
Sec. 4. Payment of BETR claims. 
Notwithstanding any provision 
of the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 36, 
chapter 915 to the 
contrary, 
the 
acquiring 
business 
is 
entitled 
to 
receive 
reimbursement under BETR of all property taxes assessed against 
Great Northern for 2002-03 and the subsequent property tax years 
that qualify for reimbursement under BETR, as long as such taxes 
are 
paid 
and 
were 
not previously 
reimbursed, 
regardless 
of 
whether the taxes are paid by Great Northern or the acquiring 
business. 
Notwithstanding any provision of the Maine Revised Statutes, 
Title 36, chapter 915 to the contrary, the acquiring business may 
file a reimbursement claim and receive reimbursement under BETR 
with respect to property tax payments made 
to the towns of 
Millinocket and East Millinocket in 2003 for the 2002-03 property 
tax year, but which payments were due from Great Northern to the 
towns of Millinocket and East Millinocket in 2002, 
as if the 
payments had been made in 2002. 
Any BETR reimbursement made to the acqulrlng business must 
exclude any costs or interest associated with late payment of 
tax. 
Unless a provision of this Act provides otherwise, the 
provlslons 
of 
the 
Title 
36, 
chapter 
apply 
to 
any 
reimbursement made to the acquiring business, including, but not 
limited to Title 36, sections 6657 and 6658. 
With respect to the Millinocket and East Millinocket mills 
BETR reimbursement claim, in no event may more than one person 
receive reimbursement for the same property tax payment. 
Emergency clause. 
In view of the emergency cited in the 
preamble, this Act takes effect when approved. 
SUMMARY 
Great Northern Paper, Inc., which is in bankruptcy, has not 
paid property taxes in the amount of $4.4 million to Millinocket 
and $3.4 million to East Millinocket for the 2002-03 property tax 
year. 
The assets in the Great Northern bankruptcy estate will 
not be sufficient to cover those taxes. 
Brascan Corporation, 
which has agreed to purchase the Millinocket and East Millinocket 
mills, has agreed to pay the unpaid property taxes, in part 
through application of business equipment tax reimbursement, or 
"BETR," 
program 
reimbursements 
and 
tax 
increment 
financing 
payments. 
Under current provisions, the BETR payments would not 
be received until at least August 2004, which would delay payment 
of taxes until then. 
This bill provides fer a loan from the 
Finance Authority of Maine that will be used to pay Millinocket 
and East Millinocket property taxes, with repayment of the lORn 
from BETR pay,nents, and ensures that Brascan will receive the 
BETR payments with respect to property taxes it will pay.