An Act To Exempt Members of the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians from Property Tax
Maine Legislature, Session 126, LD 0402
Committee: Taxation
Sponsors: BEAR
Amends: 30 MRSA §6208

Legislative Document 
No. 402 
H.P. 277 
House of Representatives, February 12, 2013 
An Act To Exempt Members of the Houlton Band of Maliseet 
Indians from Property Tax 
Reference to the Committee on Taxation suggested and ordered printed. 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative BEAR of the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  30 MRSA §6208, as amended by PL 2009, c. 384, Pt. A, §2 and affected 
by §4, is further amended to read: 
§6208.  Taxation 
1.  Settlement Fund income.  The Settlement Fund and any portion of such funds or 
income therefrom distributed to the Passamaquoddy Tribe or the Penobscot Nation or the 
members thereof shall be exempt from taxation under the laws of the State. 
2.  Property taxes.  The Passamaquoddy Tribe and the Penobscot Nation shall make 
payments in lieu of taxes on all real and personal property within their respective Indian 
territory in an amount equal to that which would otherwise be imposed by a county, a 
district, the State, or other taxing authority on such real and personal property provided, 
however, that any real or personal property within Indian territory used by either tribe or 
nation predominantly for governmental purposes shall be exempt from taxation to the 
same extent that such real or personal property owned by a municipality is exempt under 
the laws of the State. The Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians shall make payments in lieu 
of taxes on Houlton Band Trust Land in an amount equal to that which would otherwise 
be imposed by a municipality, county, district, the State or other taxing authority on that 
land or natural resource. Any Except as provided in subsection 4, any other real or 
personal property owned by or held in trust for any Indian, Indian Nation or tribe or band 
of Indians and not within Indian territory, shall be subject to levy and collection of real 
and personal property taxes by any and all taxing authorities, including but without 
limitation municipalities, except that such real and personal property owned by or held 
for the benefit of and used by the Passamaquoddy Tribe or the Penobscot Nation 
predominantly for governmental purposes shall be exempt from property taxation to the 
same extent that such real and personal property owned by a municipality is exempt 
under the laws of the State. 
2-A.  Payments in lieu of taxes; authority.  Any municipality in which Houlton 
Band Trust Land is located has the authority, at its sole discretion, to enter into 
agreements with the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians to accept other funds or other 
things of value that are obtained by or for the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians by reason 
of the trust status of the trust land as replacement for payments in lieu of taxes. 
Any agreement between the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians and the municipality must 
be jointly executed by persons duly authorized by the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians 
and the municipality and must set forth the jointly agreed value of the funds or other 
things identified serving as replacement of payments in lieu of taxes and the time period 
over which such funds or other things may serve in lieu of the obligations of the Houlton 
Band of Maliseet Indians provided in this section. 
3.  Other taxes.  The Except as provided in subsection 4, the Passamaquoddy Tribe, 
the Penobscot Nation, the members thereof, and any other Indian, Indian Nation, or tribe 
or band of Indians shall be liable for payment of all other taxes and fees to the same 
extent as any other person or entity in the State. For purposes of this section either tribe or 
nation, when acting in its business capacity as distinguished from its governmental 
capacity, shall be deemed to be a business corporation organized under the laws of the 
State and shall be taxed as such. 
4.  Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians.  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, 
the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians and members of the Houlton Band of Maliseet 
Indians are exempt from property taxes imposed under Title 36, Part 2. 
Sec. 2.  Contingent effective date.  This Act takes effect October 1, 2013 only if, 
within 90 days after the adjournment of the First Regular Session of the 126th Legislaure, 
the Secretary of State receives written certification from the Houlton Band Council of the 
Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians that the band has agreed to the provisions of this Act 
pursuant to 25 United States Code, section 1725(e)(2).  Copies of the written certification 
must be submitted by the Secretary of State to the Secretary of the Senate, the Clerk of 
the House and the Revisor of Statutes. 
SUMMARY 
This bill provides that the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians and members of the 
Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians are exempt from property taxes in the State.