An Act To Prevent Unnecessary Expulsion of Landowners from the Maine Tree Growth Tax Law Program
Maine Legislature, Session 125, LD 1138
Committee Amendment CA_A_H859 (House)
Amends: 36 MRSA §573, 36 MRSA §574-B, 36 MRSA §574-C, 36 MRSA §581, 36 MRSA §1102, 36 MRSA §1106-A, 36 MRSA §1112

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A" to H.P. 844, L.D. 1138, Bill, "An Act To 
Prevent Unnecessary Expulsion of Landowners from the Maine Tree Growth Tax Law 
Program" 
Amend the bill by striking out the title and substituting the folJowing: 
'An Act To Amend the Maine Tree Growth Tax Law and the Open Space Tax Law' 
Amend the bill by inserting after the title and before the enacting clause the 
following: 
'Mandate preamble. This measure requires one or more local units of government 
to expand or modify activities so as to necessitate additional expenditures from local 
revenues but does not provide funding for at least 90% of those expenditures. Pursuant to 
the Constitution of Maine, Article IX, Section 21, 2/3 of all of the members elected to 
each House have determined it necessary to enact this measure.' 
Amend the bill by striking out everything after the enacting clause and before the 
summary and inserting the following: 
'Sec. 1. 36 MRSA §573, sub-§6-A is enacted to read: 
6-A. Residential structure. "Residential structure" means a building used for human 
habitation as a seasonal or year-round residence. It does not include structures that are 
ancillary to the residential structure, such as a garage or storage shed. 
Sec. 2. 36 MRSA §574-B, as amended by PL 2009, c. 434, §15, is further 
amended to read: 
§574-B. Applicability 
An owner of a parcel containing forest land may apply at the landowner's election by 
filing with the assessor the schedule provided for in section 579, except that this 
subchapter does not apply to any parcel containing less than 10 acres of forest land. For 
purposes of this subchapter, a parcel is deemed to include a unit of real estate, 
notwithstanding that it is divided by a road, way, railroad or pipeline, or by a municipal 
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COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A .. to H.P. 844, L.D. 1138 
or county line. The election to apply requires the written consent of all owners of an 
interest in a parcel except for the State. For applications submitted on or after August 1, 
2012, the size of the exclusion from classification under this subchapter for each structure 
located on the parcel and for each residential structure located on the parcel in shoreland 
areas is determined pursuant to section 574-C. 
A parcel of land used primarily for growth of trees to be harvested for commercial 
use shall be is taxed according to this subchapter, flFOyided that as long as the landowner 
complies with the following requirements: 
1. Forest management and harvest plan. A forest management and harvest plan 
must be prepared for each parcel and updated every 10 years. The landowner shall file a 
sworn statement with the municipal assessor for a parcel in a municipality or with the 
State Tax Assessor for a parcel in the unorganized territory that a forest management and 
harvest plan has been prepared for the parcel; 
2. Evidence of compliance with plan. The landowner must comply with the plan 
developed under subsection 1, and must submit, every 10 years to the municipal assessor 
in a municipality or the State Tax Assessor for parcels in the unorganized territory, a 
statement from a licensed professional forester that the landowner is managing the parcel 
according to schedules in the plan required under subsection 1; afl:d 
3. Transfer of ownership. When land taxed under this subchapter is transferred to a 
new owner, within one year of the date of transfer, the new landowner must file with the 
municipal assessor or the State Tax Assessor for land in the unorganized territory one of 
the following: 
A. A sworn statement indicating that a new forest management and harvest plan has 
been prepared; or 
B. A statement from a licensed professional forester that the land is being managed 
in accordance with the plan prepared for the previous landowner. 
The new landowner may not harvest or authorize the harvest of forest products for 
commercial use until a statement described in paragraph A or B is filed with the assessor. 
A person owning timber rights on land taxed under this subchapter may not harvest or 
authorize the harvest of forest products for commercial use until a statement described in 
paragraph A or B is filed with the assessor. 
Parcels of land subject to section 573, subsection 3, paragraph B or C are exempt from 
the requirements under this section subsection. 
For the purposes of this subsection, "transferred to a new owner" means the transfer of 
the controlling interest in the fee ownership of the land or the controlling interest in the 
timber rights on the land,,; and 
4. Attestation. Beginning August 1, 2012, when a landowner is required to provide 
to the assessor evidence that a forest management and harvest plan has been prepared for 
the parcel or updated pursuant to subsection 1, or when a landowner is required to 
provide evidence of compliance pursuant to subsection 2, the landowner must provide an 
attestation that the landowner's primary use for the forest land classified pursuant to this 
subchapter is to grow trees to be harvested for commercial use or that the forest land is 
land described in section 573, subsection 3, paragraphs A, B, C or E. The existence of 
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COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A" to H.P. 844, L.D. 1138 
multiple uses on an enrolled parcel does not render it inapplicable for tax treatment under 
this subchapter, as long as the enrolled parcel remains primarily used for the growth of 
trees to be harvested for commercial use. 
Sec. 3. 36 MRSA §574-C is enacted to read: 
§574-C. Reduction of parcels with structuresi shoreland areas 
If a parcel of land for which an owner seeks classification under this subchapter on or 
after August 1, 2012 contains a structure for which a minimum lot size is required under 
state law or by municipal ordinance, the owner in the schedule under section 579 shall 
apply the following reduction to the land to be valued under this subchapter. 
1. Structures. For each structure located on the parcel for which a minimum lot size 
is required under state law or by municipal ordinance, the owner in the schedule under 
section 579 shall exclude from the forest land subject to valuation under this subchapter 
the area of land in the parcel containing the structure or structures, which may not be less 
than 112 acre. 
2. Shoreland areas. For each residential structure located within a shoreland area, 
as identified in Title 38, section 435, the owner in the schedule under section 579 shall 
exclude from the forest land subject to valuation under this subchapter the area of land in 
the parcel containing the structure or structures, which may not be less than 1/2 acre, and 
the excluded parcel must include 100 feet of shore land frontage or the minimum 
shoreland frontage required by the applicable minimum requirements of the zoning 
ordinance for the area in which the land is located, whichever is larger. If the parcel has 
less than 100 feet of shoreland frontage, the entire shore land frontage must be excluded. 
This subsection does not apply to a structure that is used principally for commercial 
activities related to forest products that have commercial value as long as any residential 
use of the structure is nonrecreational, temporary in duration and purely incidental to the 
commercial use. 
Sec. 4. 36 MRSA §581, sub-§l-A, as enacted by PL 2009, c. 577, §2, is amended 
to read: 
1-A. Notice of compliance. No earlier than 185 days prior to a deadline established 
by section 574-B, if the landowner has not yet complied with the requirements of that 
section, the assessor must provide the landowner with written notice by certified mail 
informing the landoWHer that failure to comply will result in the withdra'tVal of the 
property from taxation UHder this subehapter. The notice, at a miaiFl'lUfH, Fl'lust inform the 
landowner ofthe statutory requirements that need to be met to comply with section 574-B 
and the date of the deadline for compliance and that the conseEtUences of 'i'/ithdrav .. al 
eould include the assessment of substaHtial finaaeial penalties against the owner or by 
which the parcel may be transferred to open space classification pursuant to subchapter 
10. The notice must also state that if the owner fails to meet the deadline for complying 
with section 574-B or transferring the parcel to open space classification, a supplemental 
assessment of $500 will be assessed and that continued noncompliance will lead to a 
subsequent supplemental assessment of $500. If the notice is issued less than 120 days 
before the deadline, the owner has 120 days from the date of the notice to provide the 
assessor with the documentation to achieve compliance with section 574-B or transfer the 
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COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A" to H.P. 844, L.D. 1138 
parcel to open space classification, and the notice must specify the date by which the 
owner must comply. 
At the e~~iratioR of the eleaelliRe for eompliaRee with seetioR 574 g or 12.0 elays from the 
date of fue Rotiee, v/hiehe:'1er is later, if fue laRelowR6f has failed to meet the requiremeRts 
of seetioR 574 g, fue assessor mlist withelraw the pareel from taxatioR liReler this 
sHhehapter aRel impose a withdrawal peRalt)' liReler slibseetioR 3. 
If the landowner fails to provide the assessor with the documentation to achieve 
compliance with section 574-B or transfer the parcel to open space classification pursuant 
to subchapter 10 by the deadline specified in the notice, the assessor shall impose a $500 
penalty to be assessed and collected as a supplemental assessment in accordance with 
section 713-B. The assessor shall send notification of the supplemental assessment by 
certified mail and notify the landowner that, no later than 6 months from the date of the 
2nd notice, the landowner must comply with the requirements of section 574-B or 
transfer the parcel to open space classification pursuant to subchapter 10 and that failure 
to comply will result in an additional supplemental assessment of $500 and the landowner 
will have an additional 6-month period in which to comply with these requirements 
before the withdrawal of the parcel and the assessment of substantial financial penalties 
against the landowner. 
At the expiration of 6 months, if the landowner has not complied with section 574-B or 
transferred the parcel to open space classification under subchapter 10, the assessor shall 
assess an additional $500 supplemental assessment. The assessor shall send notification 
of the 2nd supplemental assessment by certified mail and notify the landowner that, no 
later than 6 months from the date of the notice, the landowner must comply with the 
requirements of section 574-B or transfer the parcel to open space classification pursuant 
to subchapter 10 or the land will be withdrawn from the tree growth tax program. 
If the landowner has not complied within 6 months from the date of the 2nd supplemental 
assessment, the assessor shall remove the parcel from taxation under this subchapter and 
assess a penalty for the parcel's withdrawal pursuant to subsection 3. 
This subsection does not limit the assessor from issuing other notices or compliance 
reminders to property owners at any time in addition to the notice required by this 
subsection. 
Sec. 5. 36 MRSA §1102, sub-§§4-A and 4-B are enacted to read: 
4-A, Forest management and harvest plan. "Forest management and harvest plan" 
means a written document that outlines activities to regenerate, improve and harvest a 
standing crop of timber. A plan must include the location of water bodies and wildlife 
habitat as identified by the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. A plan may 
include, but is not limited to, schedules and recommendations for timber stand 
improvement and harvesting plans and recommendations for regeneration activities. A 
plan must be prepared by a licensed professional forester or a landowner and be reviewed 
and certified by a licensed professional forester as consistent with sound silvicultural 
practices. 
4-B. Forested land. "Forested land" means land that is used in the growth of trees 
but does not include ledge, marsh, open swamp, bog, water and similar areas that are 
unsuitable for growing trees. 
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COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A" to H.P. 844, L.D. 1138 
Sec. 6. 36 MRSA §1106-A, sub-§2, ~ 
is enacted to read: 
E. Managed forest open space land is eligible for the reduction set in paragraphs A, 
Band D and an additional 10%. 
Sec. 7. 36 MRSA §1106-A, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2003, c. 414, Pt. B, §50 
and affected by c. 614, §9, is further amended to read: 
3. Definition of land eligible for additional percentage reduction. The following 
categories of open space land are eligible for the additional percentage reduction set forth 
in subsection 2, paragraphs B, C aad~ D and E. 
A. Permanently protected open space is an area of open space land that is eligible for 
an additional cumulative percentage reduction in valuation because that area is 
subject to restrictions prohibiting building development under a perpetual 
conservation easement pursuant to Title 33, chapter 7, subchapter ¥IH-A 8-A or as an 
open space preserve owned and operated by a nonprofit entity in accordance with 
section 1109, subsection 3, paragraph H. 
B. Forever wild open space is an area of open space land that is eligible for an 
additional cumulative percentage reduction in valuation because it is permanently 
protected and subject to restrictions or committed to uses by a nonprofit entity in 
accordance with section 1109, subsection 3, paragraph H that ensure that in the future 
the natural resources on that protected property will remain substantially unaltered, 
except for: 
(1) Fishing or hunting; 
(2) Harvesting shellfish in the intertidal zone; 
(3) Prevention of the spread of fires or disease; or 
(4) 
Providing opportunities for low-impact outdoor recreation, nature 
observation and study. 
C. 
Public access open space is an area of open space land, whether ordinary, 
permanently protected or forever wild, that is eligible for an additional cumulative 
percentage reduction in valuation because public access is by reasonable means and 
the applicant agrees to refrain from taking action to discourage or prohibit daytime, 
nonmotorized and nondestructive public use. The applicant may permit, but is not 
obligated to permit as a condition of qualification for public access statUs, hunting, 
snowmobiling, overnight use or other more intensive outdoor recreational uses. The 
applicant, without disqualifying land from status as public access open space, may 
impose temporary or localized public access restrictions to: 
(1) Protect active habitat of endangered species listed under Title 12, chapter 
925, subchapter 3; 
(2) Prevent destruction or harm to fragile protected natural resources under Title 
38, chapter 3, subchapter I, article 5-A; or 
(3) Protect the recreational user from any hazardous area. 
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COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 'A" to H.P. 844, L.D. 1138 
D. Managed forest open space land is an area of open space land whether ordinary, 
permanently protected pursuant to paragraph A or public access pursuant to 
paragraph C containing at least 10 acres of forested land that is eligible for an 
additional cumulative percentage reduction in valuation because the applicant has 
provided proof of a forest management and harvest plan. A forest management and 
harvest plan must be prepared for each parcel of managed forest open space land and 
updated every 10 years. The landowner must comply with the forest management 
and harvest plan and must submit every 10 years to the municipal assessor for parcels 
in a municipality or the State Tax Assessor for parcels in the unorganized territory a 
statement from a licensed professional forester that the landowner is managing the 
parcel according to the forest management and harvest plan. Failure to comply with 
the forest management and harvest plan results in the loss of the additional 
cumulative percentage reduction under this paragraph for 10 years. The assessor or 
the assessor's duly authorized representative may enter and examine the forested land 
and may examine any information in the forest management and harvest plan 
submitted by the owner. A copy of the forest management and harvest plan must be 
made available to the assessor to review upon request. For the purposes of this 
paragraph, "to review" means to see or possess a copy of a forest management and 
harvest plan for a reasonable amount of time to verify that the forest management and 
harvest plan exists or to facilitate an evaluation as to whether the forest management 
and harvest plan is appropriate and is being followed. Upon completion of a review, 
the forest management and harvest plan must be returned to the owner or an agent of 
the owner. A forest management and harvest plan provided in accordance with this 
section is confidential and is not a public record as defined in Title 1, section 402, 
subsection 3. 
Sec. 8. 36 MRSA §1112, 3rd ~, as amended by PL 2011, c. 404, §2, is further 
amended to read: 
A penalty may not be assessed at the time of a change of use from the farmland 
classification of land subject to taxation under this subchapter to the open space 
classification of land subject to taxation under this subchapter. A penalty may not be 
assessed upon the withdrawal of open space land from taxation under this subchapter if 
the owner applies for the land to be classified as and the land is accepted for classification 
as timberland under subchapter 2-A. 
There also is no penalty imposed when land 
classified as timberland is accepted for classification as open space land. A penalty may 
not be assessed upon withdrawal of open space land from taxation under this subchapter 
if the owner applies for the land to be classified as and the land is accepted for 
classification as farmland under this subchapter. A penalty may not be assessed upon 
withdrawal of land enrolled under the Maine Tree Growth Tax Law if the owner applies 
for the land to be classified as and the land is accepted for classification as farmland 
under this chapter. The recapture penalty for withdrawal from farmland classification 
within 10 years of a transfer from either open space tax classification or timberland tax 
classification is the same imposed on withdrawal from the prior tax classification, open 
space or tree growth. The recapture penalty for withdrawal from farmland classification 
more than 10 years after such a transfer will be the regular farmland recapture penalty 
provided for in this section. In the event a penalty is later assessed under subchapter 2-A, 
the period of time that the land was taxed as farmland or as open space land under this 
subchapter must be included for purposes of establishing the amount of the penalty. The 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A" to H.P. 844, L.D. 1138 
recapture penalty for withdrawal from open space classification within 10 years of a 
transfer from tree growth classification occurring on or after August 1, 2012 is the same 
that would be imposed if the land were being withdrawn from the tree growth 
classification. The recapture penalty for withdrawal from open space classification more 
than 10 years after such a transfer will be the open space recapture penalty provided for in 
this section. 
Sec. 9. Unorganized territory property withdrawn between September 
20, 2007 and July 1, 2010. Any property within the unorganized territory that was 
withdrawn from classification under the Maine Tree Growth Tax Law between 
September 20, 2007 and July 1, 2010 and returned to classification under the Maine Tree 
Growth Tax Law pursuant to Public Law 2009, chapter 577, section 3 is for all purposes 
deemed not to have been withdrawn from the Maine Tree Growth Tax Law classification 
during that period of time.' 
SUMMARY 
This amendment replaces the bill and changes the title. 
The amendment does the 
following. 
l. It provides that, on or after August 1, 2012, an owner seeking classification under 
the Maine Tree Growth Tax Law program for a parcel of land that contains a structure for 
which a minimum lot size is required under state law or by municipal ordinance, the 
owner must exclude from the owner's schedule the area of land containing the structure, 
which may be no less than 112 acre. For a parcel of land that contains a residential 
structure in a shoreland area, the owner must exclude the area of land containing the 
structure, which may be no less than 112 acre, and the excluded parcel must include 100 
feet of shoreland frontage or the minimum shoreland frontage required by the applicable 
minimum requirements of the zoning ordinance for the area in which the land is located, 
whichever is larger. 
2. It requires, beginning August 1, 2012, that landowners in the Maine Tree Growth 
Tax Law program attest at the time of enrollment and at each update of the forest 
management and harvest plan that the primary use of the enrolled property is commercial 
timber harvesting or forest land that cannot be excluded from tree growth classification 
by statute. 
3. It creates a multiple-step process for notification and imposing penalties when a 
landowner fails to comply with the requirement to update the forest management and 
harvest plan every 10 years. The process requires up to 3 notifications sent by certified 
mail. It allows the assessor to impose a $500 fine if the landowner misses the initial 
deadline and subsequent $500 penalty if the landowner has not met the requirement 
within 6 months. If the landowner has not complied with the requirement to update the 
plan or transferred the land to open space classification within an additional 6 months, the 
land will be withdrawn from the Maine Tree Growth Tax Law program and a penalty 
assessed pursuant to the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 36, section 581. 
4. It creates an additional category under the alternative valuation method of open 
space land assessment providing for an additional reduction of 10% for a landowner who 
provides and complies with a forest management and harvest plan. It provides that a 
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COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A" to H.P. 844, L.D. 1138 
landowner who fails to comply with the plan as required under the open space tax 
program loses the additional percentage for 10 years. 
5. It requires that, for property transferred from the Maine Tree Growth Tax Law 
program to the open space tax program and subsequently withdrawn from all current use 
tax programs entirely, the tree growth withdrawal penalty rather than the open space 
withdrawal penalty applies for the first 10 years after transfer. 
6. It clarifies that any property within the unorganized territory that was withdrawn 
from classification under the Maine Tree Growth Tax Law between September 20, 2007 
and July 1,2010 and returned to tree growth classification pursuant to Public Law 2009, 
chapter 577, section 3 is for all purposes deemed not to have been withdrawn from tree 
growth classification during that period of time. 
FISCAL ~OTE REQUIRED 
(See attached) 
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COMMITTEE AMENDMENT 
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Approved: 03128/12 ;t,ae 
LD 1138 
LR 1214(02) 
An Act To Prevent Unnecessary Expulsion of Landowners from the Maine Tree Growth Tax Law 
Program 
State Mandates 
Fiscal Note for Bill as Amended by Committee Amendment 'A" ( Ii .. ~Sq) 
Committee: Taxation 
Fiscal Note Required: Yes 
Fiscal Note 
State Mandate - Exempted 
Potential future biennium savings - General Fund 
Required Activity 
Unit Affected 
Local Cost 
Municipalities are currently required to send a notice by certified mail or personal 
Municipality 
Moderate 
delivery of any deficiency in complying with the requirements of the Tree Growth 
statewide 
Tax Law Program, the deadlines for compliance and the consequences of 
withdrawal from that program. The bill modifies that requirement and establishes a 
multiple-step process for notification requiring up to three notices to be delivered by 
certified mail. 
Pursuant to the Mandate Preamble, the two-thirds vote of all members elected to each House exempts the state from 
the constitutional requirement to fund 90% of the additional costs. 
Fiscal Detail and Notes 
The bill imposes additional restrictions that must be satisfied for owners seeking classification of property under the 
Maine Tree Growth Tax Law program on or after August 1, 2012. It creates a multi-step process for notification and 
imposes penalties when the owner fails to comply with program requirements, creates an additional category under the 
alternative valuation method of open space land assessment providing for an additional reduction of 10% for a 
landowner who provides and complies with a forest management and harvest plan, and requires that the tree growth 
withdrawal penalty applies rather than the open space withdrawal penalty for the first ten years after a property is 
transferred from the Tree Growth program to the open space tax program. These changes may lead to a future 
reduction in acreage enrolled in the Maine Tree Growth Tax Program and an increase in land enrolled under the Open 
Space Tax Program. This may, over time, lead to reduced property tax revenues for municipalities and reduced 
General Fund reimbursement to municipalities for revenue lost as a result of the Tree Growth Tax Program. The 
precise effects on municipal budgets and on required State reimbursements cannot be determined at this time, but 
based on past experience are estimated by Maine Revenue Services to be relatively small. Any additional 
administrative costs to Maine Revenue Services can be absorbed within additional resources. 
LR1214(02) - Fiscal Note - Page 1 of 1