An Act to Amend the Laws Establishing a Property Tax Stabilization Program for Senior Citizens
Maine Legislature, Session 131, LD 1413
Committee: Taxation
Sponsors: RUSSELL, EATON, MILLIKEN, O'CONNELL, WORTH
Amends: 36 MRSA §5403, 36 MRSA §6281

Legislative Document
No. 1413
H.P. 909
House of Representatives, March 30, 2023
An Act to Amend the Laws Establishing a Property Tax 
Stabilization Program for Senior Citizens
Reference to the Committee on Taxation suggested and ordered printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative RUSSELL of Verona Island.
Cosponsored by Representatives: EATON of Deer Isle, MILLIKEN of Blue Hill, 
O'CONNELL of Brewer, WORTH of Ellsworth.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  36 MRSA §5403, sub-§7, as enacted by PL 2017, c. 474, Pt. B, §24, is 
amended to read:
7.  Personal exemptions.  Beginning in 2018 and each year thereafter, by the dollar 
amounts contained in section 5126‑A, subsection 1, except that for the purposes of this 
subsection, notwithstanding section 5402, subsection 1‑B, the "cost-of-living adjustment" 
is the Chained Consumer Price Index for the 12-month period ending June 30th of the 
preceding calendar year divided by the Chained Consumer Price Index for the 12-month 
period ending June 30, 2017; and
Sec. 2.  36 MRSA §5403, sub-§8, as enacted by PL 2017, c. 474, Pt. B, §24, is 
amended to read:
8.  Personal exemption phase-out.  Beginning in 2018 and each year thereafter, by 
the dollar amount of the applicable amounts specified in section 5126‑A, subsection 2, 
paragraphs A, B and C, except that for the purposes of this subsection, notwithstanding 
section 5402, subsection 1‑B, the "cost-of-living adjustment" is the Chained Consumer 
Price Index for the 12-month period ending June 30th of the preceding calendar year 
divided by the Chained Consumer Price Index for the 12-month period ending June 30, 
2017.; and
Sec. 3.  36 MRSA §5403, sub-§9 is enacted to read:
9.  Senior property tax stabilization.  Beginning in 2024 and each year thereafter, by 
the dollar amounts contained in section 6281, subsection 1, paragraph B, subparagraph (3), 
except that for the purposes of this subsection, notwithstanding section 5402, subsection 
1-B, the "cost-of-living adjustment" is the Chained Consumer Price Index for the 12-month 
period ending June 30th of the preceding calendar year divided by the Chained Consumer 
Price Index for the 12-month period ending June 30, 2017.
Sec. 4.  36 MRSA §6281, sub-§1, ¶B, as enacted by PL 2021, c. 751, §1, is 
amended to read:
B.  "Eligible individual" means an individual who is certified annually by the State Tax 
Assessor as having the following qualifications:
(1)  Is 65 years of age or older; and
(2)  Is a permanent resident of the State as defined in section 681, subsection 4 who 
has owned a homestead in the State for at least 10 years.; and
(3)  For individuals who are married and share a homestead, have a total annual 
Maine adjusted gross income, as defined in section 5102, subsection 1-C, of no 
more than $120,000 and, for an individual who is not married, has a total annual 
Maine adjusted gross income, as defined in section 5102, subsection 1-C, of no 
more than $60,000.
Sec. 5.  36 MRSA §6281, sub-§4, as enacted by PL 2021, c. 751, §1, is repealed.
Sec. 6.  36 MRSA §6281, sub-§4-A is enacted to read:
4-A.  Continuation of eligibility; change of homestead.  If an eligible individual has 
been eligible for stabilization under this section, the individual continues to be eligible as 
long as the individual continues to reside in the eligible homestead and meets the income 
requirements of subsection 1, paragraph B.  If an eligible individual changes residence, the 
individual must establish eligibility in the new homestead.
SUMMARY
This bill establishes an income eligibility requirement for the senior property tax 
stabilization program and provides for annual indexing of the income thresholds.  The bill 
also requires certification of eligibility by the State Tax Assessor and repeals the provision 
in current law that eligibility for the program may be transferred to a different municipality 
if an eligible individual changes homesteads.