An Act To Restore Benefits under the Circuitbreaker Program (AFTER DEADLINE)
Maine Legislature, Session 123, LD 2305
Committee: Taxation
Sponsors: STRIMLING, FISCHER, EDMONDS, NASS, PERRY, ROTUNDO
Amends: 36 MRSA §6201, 36 MRSA §6207, 36 MRSA §6209

Legislative Document 
No. 2305 
S.P.921 
April 7, 2008 
An Act To Restore Benefits under the Circuitbreaker Program 
(AFTER DEADLINE) 
Approved for introduction by a majority of the Legislative Council pursuant to Joint Rule 
205. 
Reference to the Committee on Taxation suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Senator STRIMLING of Cumberland. 
JOY J. O'BRIEN 
Secretary of the Senate 
Cosponsored by Representative FISCHER of Presque Isle and Senators: President EDMONDS 
of Cumberland, NASS of York, PERRY of Penobscot, ROTUNDO of Androscoggin, 
Representative: PlOTT! of Unity. 
Printed on recycled paper 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
PART A 
Sec. A-I. 36 MRSA §6201, sub-§l, as amended by PL 2007, c. 539, Pt. BBBB, 
§ 1, is further amended to read: 
1. Benefit base. "Benefit base" means property taxes accrued or rent constituting 
property taxes accrued. In the case of a claimant paying both rent and property taxes for 
a homestead, benefit base means both property taxes accrued and rent constituting 
property taxes accrued. 
For application periods beginning on or after A\:Ig\:lst 1, 2008, 
tHe The benefit base may not exceed ~ 
$3,350 for single-member households and 
0 
~ 
$4,400 for households with 2 or more members. 
Sec. A-2. 36 MRSA §6207, sub-§2-A is enacted to read: 
2-A. Income eligibility. For application periods beginning on or after August 1, 
2008, a single-member household with a household income in excess of $60,000 and a 
household with 2 or more members with a household income in excess of $80,000 are not 
eligible for a benefit. 
Sec. A-3. 36 MRSA §6209, sub-§3 is enacted to read: 
3. Benefit base maximum adjustment. Beginning March 1, 2009, the State Tax 
Assessor shall annually multiply the household income eligibility adjustment factor by 
the maximum benefit base amounts specified in section 6201, subsection 1, as previously 
adjusted. The result must be rounded to the nearest $50 and applies to the application 
period beginning the next August 1 st. 
Sec. A-4. 36 MRSA §6209, sub-§4 is enacted to read: 
4. Income eligibility adjustment. Beginning March 1, 2009, the State Tax Assessor 
shall annually multiply the household income eligibility adjustment factor by the 
maximum income eligibility amounts specified in section 6207, subsection 2, as 
previously adjusted. The result must be rounded to the nearest $50 and applies to the 
application period beginning the next August 1 st. 
PART B 
Sec. B-1. 36 MRSA §S200-A, sub-§2, ~, as amended by PL 2007, c. 539, Pt. 
AAAA, § 1, is further amended to read: 
H. 
For each taxable year subsequent to the year of the loss, an amount equal to the 
absolute value of the net operating loss arising from tax years beginning on or after 
January 1, 1989 but before January 1, 1993 and the absolute value of the amount of 
any net operating loss arising from tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2002, 
for which federal adjusted gross income was increased under subsection 1, paragraph 
H and that, pursuant to the Code, Section 172, was carried back for federal income 
Page I - 123LR3622(Ol)-1 
tax purposes, less the absolute value of loss used in the taxable year of loss to offset 
any addition modification required by subsection 1, but only to the extent that: 
(1) Maine taxable income is not reduced below zero; 
(2) The taxable year is within the allowable federal period for carry-over; 
(3) The amount has not been previously used as a modification pursuant to this 
subsection; and 
(4) For taxable years beginning in 2008 or 2009, the amount does not exceed 
$100,000 $75,000. In the case of an affiliated group of corporations engaged in a 
unitary business, the $100,000 $75,000 threshold applies with respect to the 
entire affiliated group of corporations. 
Sec. B-2. 36 MRSA §S200-A, sub-§2, ~, as amended by PL 2007, c. 539, Pt. 
AAAA, §2, is further amended to read: 
L. 
An amount equal to the absolute value of any net operating loss arising from a 
tax year beginning or ending in 2001 for which federal taxable income was increased 
under subsection 1, paragraph M and that, pursuant to Section 102 of the federal Job 
Creation and Worker Assistance Act of 2002, Public Law 107-147, was carried back 
more than 2 years to the taxable year for federal income tax purposes, but only to the 
8 
extent that: 
(1) Maine taxable income is not reduced below zero; 
(2) The taxable year is either within 2 years prior to the year in which the loss 
arose or within the allowable federal period for carry-over of net operating losses; 
(3) The amount has not been previously used as a modification pursuant to this 
subsection; and 
(4) For taxable years beginning in 2008 or 2009, the amount does not exceed 
$100,000 $75,000. In the case of an affiliated group of corporations engaged in a 
unitary business, the $100,000 $75,000 threshold applies with respect to the 
entire affiliated group of corporations. 
SUMMARY 
Public Law 2007, chapter 539 changed the Circuitbreaker Program by repealing 
indexing of the maximum benefits under the program and reverting the maximum benefit 
1 
to the amounts prior to indexing. 
This bill restores indexing of the maximum benefit and puts the amounts of the 
benefit, beginning with the application period beginning August 1, 2008, at the amounts 
they would have been, $3,350 for single-member households and $4,400 for multi-
member households, but for the changes made by Public Law 2007, chapter 539. This 
bill also places an income cap for eligibility for benefits under the Circuitbreaker 
Program of $60,000 for an individual and $80,000 for a multi-member household and 
provides for the indexing of that cap. 
This bill also limits the subtraction modification for the recapture of carry-back net 
operating losses to $75,000 from the current $100,000 in taxable years beginning in 2008 
and 2009. Unused amounts resulting from the limitation may be carried over to future tax 
years that are within the federal carry-over period for net operating losses. 
FISCAL NOTE REQUIRED 
(See attached) 
Net Cost (Savings) 
General Fund 
Revenue 
General Fund 
Approved: 04/03/08 ;t!;?ac:.. 
LD 
LR 3622(01) 
An Act To Restore Benefits under the Circuitbreaker Program 
Fiscal Note for Original Bill 
Sponsor: Sen. Strimling of Cumberland 
Committee: Not Referred 
Fiscal Note Required: Yes 
Fiscal Note 
2007-08 
2008-09 
$0 
($14,235) 
Projections 
2009-10 
($4,605,765) 
Projections 
2010-11 
$4,892,214 
Other Special Revenue Funds 
$0 
$0 
$14,235 
$765 
$4,605,765 
$252,637 
($4,892,214) 
($268,348) 
Fiscal Detail and Notes 
The net General Fund revenue increase that results from changes to the Maine Residents Property Tax program and 
changes to the net operating loss income modification is $14,235 in fiscal year 2008-09. 
LR3622(01) - Fiscal Note - Page I of I