An Act to Amend the Tax Credit for Major Business Headquarters Expansions Regarding Employees' Location and Time of Hire for Purposes of the Credit
Maine Legislature, Session 131, LD 1313
Committee: Taxation
Sponsors: GROHOSKI, PERRY
Amends: 36 MRSA §5219-Q

Legislative Document
No. 1313
S.P. 531
In Senate, March 23, 2023
An Act to Amend the Tax Credit for Major Business Headquarters 
Expansions Regarding Employees' Location and Time of Hire for 
Purposes of the Credit
Submitted by the Department of Economic and Community Development pursuant to Joint 
Rule 204.
Reference to the Committee on Taxation suggested and ordered printed.
DAREK M. GRANT
Secretary of the Senate
Presented by Senator GROHOSKI of Hancock.
Cosponsored by Representative PERRY of Bangor.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  36 MRSA §5219-QQ, sub-§1, ¶C, as enacted by PL 2017, c. 297, §2, is 
amended to read:
C.  "Employees based in the State" means employees that perform more than 50% of 
employee-related activities for the employer at the headquarters a location in the State.
Sec. 2.  36 MRSA §5219-QQ, sub-§3, ¶B, as repealed and replaced by PL 2019, 
c. 401, Pt. D, §2, is amended by amending subparagraph (1) to read:
(1)  A credit is not allowed for any tax year during which the taxpayer does not 
meet or exceed the following employment targets as measured on the last day of 
the tax year.
(a)  For each of the first 10 tax years for which the credit is claimed, there must 
be a total of at least 80 additional full-time employees based in the State above 
the certified applicant's base level of employment whose jobs were added since 
the first day of the first tax year for which the credit was claimed on or after 
January 1, 2018 multiplied by the number of years for which the credit has 
been claimed, including the tax year for which the credit is currently being 
claimed.
(b)  For each tax year after the 10th tax year for which the credit is claimed, 
the taxpayer must employ a total of at least 800 additional full-time employees 
based in the State above the certified applicant's base level of employment 
whose jobs were added since the first day of the first tax year for which the 
credit was claimed on or after January 1, 2018.
Jobs for additional full-time employees that are counted for determining eligibility 
for the credit under one certificate of completion may not be counted for 
determining eligibility for the credit under a separate certificate of completion.  For 
purposes of this paragraph, "additional full-time employees" does not include 
employees who are shifted to a certified applicant's headquarters in the State from 
an affiliated business in the State.  The commissioner shall determine whether a 
shifting of employees has occurred.  For purposes of this paragraph, "affiliated 
business" has the same meaning as in section 6753, subsection 1‑A.
Sec. 3.  36 MRSA §5219-QQ, sub-§4, ¶A, as repealed and replaced by PL 2019, 
c. 401, Pt. D, §3, is amended by amending subparagraph (5) to read:
(5)  The average and median wages of all additional full-time employees above the 
certified applicant's base level of employment in the State whose jobs were added 
since the first day of the first tax year for which the credit was claimed on or after 
January 1, 2018; and
Sec. 4.  Retroactivity. This Act applies retroactively to January 1, 2021.
SUMMARY
This bill amends the credit for major business headquarters expansions to allow 
employees working anywhere in the State, not just at the applicant's headquarters, to be 
counted as employees for purposes of the credit.  The bill also changes the time for 
determining the number of new employees added to January 1, 2018 or later; it is currently 
the first day of the first year for which the tax credit is claimed.  The changes made in this 
bill are retroactive to January 1, 2021.