An Act to Fund the Protection and Restoration of Riparian and Estuarine Ecosystems and to Impose an Excise Tax on Certain Bottled Water Operators
Maine Legislature, Session 131, LD 0854
Committee: Taxation
Sponsors: SAYRE, ANKELES, GRAMLICH, JAUCH, PERRY, BEEBE-CENTER, TIPPING
Amends: 5 MRSA §6203

Legislative Document
No. 854
H.P. 544
House of Representatives, February 23, 2023
An Act to Fund the Protection and Restoration of Riparian and 
Estuarine Ecosystems and to Impose an Excise Tax on Certain 
Bottled Water Operators
Reference to the Committee on Taxation suggested and ordered printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative SAYRE of Kennebunk.
Cosponsored by Representatives: ANKELES of Brunswick, GRAMLICH of Old Orchard 
Beach, JAUCH of Topsham, PERRY of Bangor, Senators: BEEBE-CENTER of Knox, 
TIPPING of Penobscot.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  5 MRSA §6203, sub-§3, ¶A-1 is enacted to read:
A-1.  Acquire, restore or protect riparian or estuarine lands in the State that are essential 
to protecting aquifers, surface waters or intertidal waters on which human and natural 
communities depend;
Sec. 2.  36 MRSA c. 368 is enacted to read:
CHAPTER 368
EXTRACTION OF WATER FOR COMMERCIAL BOTTLING
§2731.  Bottled water operator defined
As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, "bottled water operator" 
means a person engaged in the business of bottling or packaging water for sale.
§2732.  Excise tax
1.  Imposition of tax.  Beginning with the extraction of water occurring on or after 
November 1, 2023, an excise tax is imposed for the privilege of engaging in the business 
of extracting water on each bottled water operator that extracted more than 1,500,000 
gallons of groundwater or surface water from springs or other underground sources within 
the State in the previous calendar year for commercial bottling for sale.
2.  Rate of tax.  The excise tax under subsection 1 is imposed at a rate of 5¢ per gallon 
of water extracted in the State.
3.  Payment.  Each bottled water operator shall prepare and submit to the assessor by 
the 15th of each month a return according to procedures and schedules specified by the 
assessor reporting the total gallons of water extracted for bottling during the preceding 
month and other information required by the assessor and shall pay the excise tax under 
this section each month to the assessor at the time the report is submitted.
4.  Transfer; purpose.  On the 15th of each month, the assessor shall transfer the total 
funds received under subsection 3 to the Land for Maine's Future Fund established in Title 
5, section 6203.  The funds transferred pursuant to this subsection must be used for the 
purposes identified in Title 5, section 6203, subsection 3, paragraph A-1.
5.  Records.  A bottled water operator shall preserve for a period of at least 3 years a 
record of the amount of all water extracted in this State by that bottled water operator during 
that period.
§2733.  Rules
The department may adopt rules to implement this chapter.  Rules adopted pursuant to 
this section are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A.
Sec. 3.  Application. That section of this Act that enacts the Maine Revised Statutes, 
Title 36, chapter 368 applies to bottled water operators that extracted more than 1,500,000 
gallons of water in the State in a calendar year beginning with 2022.
SUMMARY
This bill creates an excise tax of 5¢ per gallon on the extraction of groundwater or 
surface water for commercial bottling for sale and allocates the funds to the Land for 
Maine's Future Fund to acquire, restore or protect riparian or estuarine lands in the State 
that are essential to protecting aquifers, surface waters or intertidal waters on which human 
and natural communities depend.