An Act To Reduce Property Taxes by Reforming County Government
Maine Legislature, Session 122, LD 1536
Committee: Taxation
Sponsors: MERRILL, DUDLEY, PINGREE, PIOTTI, SCHATZ

Legislative Document 
No. 1536 
H.P.1081 
House of Representatives, April 4, 2005 
An Act To Reduce Property Taxes by Reforming County 
Government 
Reference to the Committee on Taxation suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Representative MERRILL of Appleton. 
'!r/~/h.~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Cosponsored by Representatives: DUDLEY of Portland, PINGREE of North Haven, PIOTTI 
of Unity, SCHATZ of Blue Hill. 
Printed 00 recycled paper 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. I. 30-A MRSA c.19 is enacted to read: 
CBAP'.rER 19 
COUNTY DISTRICTS 
51961. 
County districts 
Subject 
to 
approval 
under 
section 
1962, 
there 
are 
established 8 county districts composed as follows: 
1. 
Count]" district 1. 
County district 1 consists of York 
County; 
2. 
COunty district 2. 
County district 
consists 
of 
Cumberland County: 
3. 
COunty district 3. 
County district 
consists 
of 
Androscoggin County, Oxford County and Franklin County: 
4. 
COunty district 4. 
County district 
consists 
of 
Somerset County and Kennebec County: 
5. 
Coupty district 5. 
County district 
consists 
of 
Penobscot County and Piscataquis County: 
6. 
County district 6. 
County district 
consists 
of 
Sagadahoc County, Lincoln County, Knox County and Waldo County: 
7. 
County district 7. 
County district 
consists 
of 
Hancock County and Washington County: and 
8. 
County district 8. 
County district 
consists 
of 
Aroostook County. 
51962. 
Formation of or consolidation of counties into 
county district 
1. 
County district approval. 
A vote to determine 
the 
approval of formation of a county district or consolidation of 
counties into a county district may be initiated in the following 
ways: 
A. 
A majority of county commissioners of 
a 
county may 
require the question of whether a county district should be 
formed 
from the county or the counties in the proposed 
county district should combine into one county district to 
be put to the voters in that proposed county district: or 
•. 
B. 
Ten percent of the voters in a proposed county district 
may petition to form a county district. The petitions must 
be prepared by the Secretary of State and require the same 
safeguards as petitions filed under the Constitution of 
Maine, Article 4, Part Third. 
2. 
Election to consider fOrmation; question; termination of 
counties. 
When the Secretary of State receives notice of an 
authorizing 
yote 
by 
the 
county 
commissioners 
pursuant 
to 
subsection 
1, 
paragraph 
A 
or 
verifies 
that 
the 
petitions 
submitted pursuant to subsection 1, 
paragraph B contain the 
required number of yalid signatures calling for the approyal of a 
~istrict county, the Secretary of State shall prepare the ballots 
and have the question of approval placed on the ballot at the 
next general election. 
The question put to the yoters must be: 
"Shall (list the included counties) form a new county district? II 
If a majority of the yoters in the proposed county district yote 
in fayor of the formation of the county district. those countie~ 
cease to exist as separate goyernmental entities on the July 1st 
following approyal. 
3. 
Transition. 
If the formation of a county district is 
approyed pursuant to subsection 2. the county commissioners from 
each of the counties contained in the county district shall 
conyene the January immediately following the yote to appoint a 
charter commission. 
The charter commission must include at least 
registered voters from each of the counties contained in the 
county district. 
If the vote to approye the county district was 
initiated pursuant to subsection L 
paragraph B. at least 113 of 
those appointed to the charter commission must be chosen from the 
voters 
who 
actiyely circulated the petitions to approye 
the 
county district. 
The charter commission shall deyelop a proposed 
charter and put it before the voters of the county district in 
the next general or statewide election. 
If the charter is not 
approved. the charter commission shall make necessary changes and 
put the revised charter to vote at the next general or statewide 
election until the charter is approved. 
Upon approyal of the 
charter. 
the county district may levy fees and receive state 
assistance available to counties that combine their services. 
4. 
Governance of county district. 
The county commissioners 
~he counties forming the county district approved pursuant to 
subsection 
shall 
govern 
the 
county 
district 
until 
the 
Legislature creates 3 voting districts in the county district. 
New 
county 
district 
commissioners 
must 
be 
elected 
in 
the 
statewide or general election following formation of the voting 
districts. with one county district commissioner elected from 
~ach yoting district. 
County district commissioners serve for a 
term 
of office of 
years 
except 
for 
the 
county district 
commissioners 
elected 
immediately 
following 
formation 
of 
the 
county di s t ri ct. 
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are staggered as follows: 
A. 
The commissioner wbo receives the greatest number of 
votes serves an initial term of 3 years; 
B. 
The commissioner with the next greatest number of votes 
serves 2 years; and 
C. 
The commissioner with the 3rd greatest number of votes 
serves one year. 
§1963. 
Combining services among counties in proposed 
county district 
Notwithstanding the approval requirements of section 1962, 
subsection 2, in a proposed county district composed of more than 
one county, a majority of the county commissioners of each county 
in the proposed county district may authorize the combination of 
services 
in 
that 
proposed 
county 
district. 
The 
county 
commissioners of the proposed county district shall determine the 
basis of apportioning the costs of the combined services among 
the counties in the proposed county district. 
Sec. 2. Reduction of property taxes paid to county government. 
The 
county district commissioners of a county district established 
pursuant to the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 30-A, chapter 19 
may levy a county district real estate transfer tax in addition 
to the real estate transfer tax imposed pursuant to Title 36, 
section 4641-A. 
The county district levy must exempt the first 
$200,000 of the real estate sales price. 
All funds raised by the 
county district transfer tax must be used for combined police or 
record-keeping services provided on a county-districtwide basis. 
Sec. 3. Termination of responsibility for county jailsj 1% local sales 
tax. 
A county district approved pursuant to the Maine Revised 
Statutes, Title 30-A, chapter 19 may relinquish responsibility 
for county jails to the State pursuant to this section. 
If a 
county district relinquishes responsibility for county jails in 
that county district, then the State shall impose an additional 
1,\ sales and use tax in that county district. 
The additional 
sales and use tax must be collected and remitted in the same 
manner as the sales and use tax imposed pursuant to Title 36, 
Part 3. 
1. 
Connissioner-initiated termination of county jails and 
imposition of sales and use tax. 
A majority of the county 
district commissioners from a county district may vote to require 
r 
the State to assume the responsibility for all inmates who would 
have 
otherwise been housed 
in a 
jail operated by 
a 
county 
contained in the county district and authorize the levy of an 
additional 1% sales and use tax. 
2. 
Voter-initiated 
termination 
of 
county 
jails 
and 
imposition of sales and use tax. Ten percent of the voters in a 
county district may petition to require the State to assume the 
responsibility for all inmates who 
would have otherwise been 
housed in a jail operated by a 
county contained in a 
county 
district and authorize the levy of an additional 1% sales and use 
tax. 
The petitions must be prepared by the Secretary of State 
and require the same safeguards as petitions filed under the 
Constitution of Maine, Article 4, Part Third. 
3. 
Election to determine responsibility for jails in county 
district. 
Once the Secretary of State receives a request from 
the county district commissioners pursuant to subsection 1 or 
verifies a valid petition pursuant to subsection 2 calling for 
the State to assume jail services, the Secretary of State shall 
prepare the ballots and have the question included on the ballot 
at the next general election. The question put to the voters must 
be: "Shall the (name of county district) require the State to 
assume full jail services for this county district and authorize 
the State to raise the sales and use tax in this district by 1% 
to provide for 
the cost of the State's assuming the county 
district's jail services?" 
4. 
Termination of county jail. 
If a majority of the voters 
in 
a 
county district vote in favor of the State's assuming 
control over every county jail in the county district, the State 
shall assume responsibility by July 1 following the vote. 
The 
State shall impose an addi tional 1% sales and use tax in each 
county district in which the State assumes responsibility for a 
jail 
within 
that 
county 
district. 
The 
revenue 
from 
the 
additional 1% sales and use tax must be used to defray the costs 
of the Department of Corrections. 
Sec. 4. Combined voter-initiated petition. 
Notwithstanding the 
provisions of the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 30-A, chapter 19 
and section 3 of this Act, 
the voters in a 
proposed county 
district may include both the issue of approval of the county 
district and transfer of jail responsibility to the State in one 
petition as long as the petition meets the other requirements of 
Title 
30-A, 
section 1962, 
subsection 1, 
paragraph 
B. 
If 
a 
petition initiated pursuant to this section is signed by at least 
10% of the voters in the proposed county district, the Secretary 
of State shall prepare the ballots and have the question included 
on the ballot at the next general election. The question put to 
the voters must be: "Shall the (list the included counties) form 
a new county district and require the State to assume full jail 
services for this county district and authorize the State to 
raise the sales and use tax in this district by 1% to provide for 
the cost of the State's assuming the county district's jail 
services?" 
Sec. 5. Efficiency fund grants to promote consolidation. 
I f 
a 
county 
district 
established 
pursuant 
to 
the 
Maine 
Revised 
Statutes, Title 30-A, chapter 19 comprises more than one county 
and 
the 
county 
district 
combines 
police 
or 
record-keeping 
services of the counties contained in the county district, the 
State shall appropriate $1,000,000 to that county district to aid 
in the transition to a county district. 
The appropriation may be 
made over a 5-year period. 
Sec. 6. Implementing legislation. 
Following the approval of the 
formation or consolidation of counties into a county district 
pursuant to the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 30-A, chapter 19, 
the Legislature shall enact legislation necessary to implement 
the purposes of this Act. 
SUMMARY 
This bill establishes 8 county districts. 
The bill empowers 
the commissioners of a county district to impose an additional 
real estate transfer tax on the transfer of property contained in 
that county district; the first $200,000 of the sales price is 
exempt from the new tax. 
The revenue from the additional real 
estate 
transfer 
tax 
must 
be 
used 
to 
pay 
for 
police 
and 
record-keeping services for the county district. 
The 
bill 
also 
allows 
a 
county 
district 
to 
transfer 
responsibility for 
every county jail located in that county 
district to the State by voting to pay an extra penny per dollar 
on the sales and use tax for sales in that county district. 
The 
revenue from the additional sales and use tax must be used to 
defray the costs of the Department of Corrections. 
The bill also provides 
an 
appropriation of 
$1,000,000, 
spread out over as many as 5 years, to a district county that 
comprises more than one county that combines the police and 
record-keeping services of the counties located in that county 
district. 
The 
county districts created by the bill are: 
county 
district 1, York County: county district 2, Cumberland County: 
county 
district 
3, 
Androscoggin 
County, 
Oxford 
County 
and 
Franklin County: county district 4, Somerset County and Kennebec 
county; 
county district 
5, 
Penobscot 
County 
and Piscataquis 
County; county district 6, Sagadahoc County, Lincoln County, Knox 
County and Waldo County; county district 7, Hancock County and 
Washington County; and county district 8, Aroostook County.