An Act To Require Same-year State Valuations for Education Funding Purposes for Municipalities That Lose More Than 35 Percent of Their Tax Base
Maine Legislature, Session 128, LD 0420
Committee: Education and Cultural Affairs
Sponsors: AUSTIN, CHENETTE, DOORE, MARTIN, RILEY, SKOLFIELD, SPEAR
Amends: 20-A MRSA §15672, 36 MRSA §208-B

Legislative Document
No. 420
H.P. 300
House of Representatives, February 7, 2017
An Act To Require Same-year State Valuations for Education 
Funding Purposes for Municipalities That Lose More Than 35 
Percent of Their Tax Base
Reference to the Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs suggested and ordered 
printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative AUSTIN of Skowhegan.
Cosponsored by Senator CHENETTE of York and Representatives: DOORE of Augusta, 
MARTIN of Sinclair, RILEY of Jay, SKOLFIELD of Weld, SPEAR of South Thomaston.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  20-A MRSA §15672, sub-§23, ¶¶B and C, as enacted by PL 2013, c. 
203, §1, are amended to read: 
B.  For fiscal year 2014-15, the average of the certified state valuations for the 2 most 
recent years prior to the most recently certified state valuation; and 
C.  For Except as provided in paragraph D, for fiscal year 2015-16 and each 
subsequent fiscal year, the average of the certified state valuations for the 3 most 
recent years prior to the most recently certified state valuation.; and 
Sec. 2.  20-A MRSA §15672, sub-§23, ¶D is enacted to read: 
D.  Beginning in fiscal year 2018-19, if the State Tax Assessor has certified to the 
commissioner under Title 36, section 208-B that a municipality's most recently 
certified state valuation is at least 35% less than the state valuation for the previous 
year and the decline is due to a loss of valuation attributable to a single taxpayer, the 
most recently certified state valuation for the municipality. 
Sec. 3.  36 MRSA §208-B is enacted to read: 
§208-B.  Decline in certified state valuation 
Beginning with the 2018 state valuation, if a municipality's most recently certified 
state valuation declines in an amount that is greater than 35% from the next most recently 
certified state valuation and that decline is due to the loss in value attributable to a single 
taxpayer, the State Tax Assessor shall certify to the Commissioner of Education that the 
municipality's certified state valuation qualifies under Title 20-A, section 15672, 
subsection 23, paragraph D. 
SUMMARY 
This bill changes the determination for property fiscal capacity as used to determine 
the amount of state aid a school administrative unit receives under the school funding 
formula if a municipality has experienced a decline in state valuation of at least 35% 
attributable to one taxpayer.  Under this bill, the State Tax Assessor is required to certify 
to the Commissioner of Education when a municipality's state valuation has declined by 
at least 35% from the previous year's certified state valuation and the decline is due to the 
loss in value attributable to a single taxpayer.  When those conditions have been met, the 
property fiscal capacity for that municipality is the most recently certified state valuation.