An Act to Preserve and Strengthen the Fund for a Healthy Maine
Maine Legislature, Session 132, LD 1658
Committee: Health and Human Services
Sponsors: GRAHAM, INGWERSEN
Amends: 22 MRSA §1511, 36 MRSA §4365, 36 MRSA §4365-F, 36 MRSA §4365-G, 36 MRSA §4366-A, 36 MRSA §4381, 36 MRSA §4401, 36 MRSA §4403, 36 MRSA §4410

Legislative Document
No. 1658
H.P. 1099
House of Representatives, April 15, 2025
An Act to Preserve and Strengthen the Fund for a Healthy Maine
Reference to the Committee on Health and Human Services suggested and ordered printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative GRAHAM of North Yarmouth.
Cosponsored by Senator INGWERSEN of York and
Representatives: MEYER of Eliot, MOONEN of Portland, SHAGOURY of Hallowell, 
STOVER of Boothbay, ZAGER of Portland.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  22 MRSA §1511, sub-§2, ¶B, as enacted by PL 1999, c. 401, Pt. V, §1, is 
amended to read:
B.  Money from any other source, whether public or private, designated for deposit into 
or credited to the fund, including, without limitation, revenue from the tax imposed on 
cigarettes pursuant to Title 36, chapter 703 and the tax imposed on tobacco products 
pursuant to Title 36, chapter 704; and
Sec. 2.  36 MRSA §4365, as amended by PL 2005, c. 457, Pt. AA, §1 and affected 
by §8, is further amended to read:
§4365.  Rate of tax
A Before January 5, 2026, a tax is imposed on all cigarettes imported into this State or 
held in this State by any person for sale at the rate of 100 mills for each cigarette.  Beginning 
January 5, 2026, a tax is imposed on all cigarettes imported into this State or held in this 
State by any person for sale at the rate of 150 mills for each cigarette.  Payment of the tax 
is evidenced by the affixing of stamps to the packages containing the cigarettes.
Sec. 3.  36 MRSA §4365-F, as enacted by PL 2005, c. 457, Pt. AA, §3 and affected 
by §8, is repealed.
Sec. 4.  36 MRSA §4365-G is enacted to read:
§4365-G.  Application of cigarette tax rate increase effective January 5, 2026
The following provisions apply to cigarettes held for resale on January 5, 2026. 
1. Stamped rate. Cigarettes stamped at the rate of 100 mills per cigarette and held for 
resale on or after January 5, 2026 are subject to tax at the rate of 150 mills per cigarette. 
2. Liability. A person possessing cigarettes for resale is liable for the difference 
between the tax rate of 150 mills per cigarette and the tax rate of 100 mills per cigarette in 
effect before January 5, 2026. Stamps indicating payment of the tax imposed by this section 
must be affixed to all packages of cigarettes held for resale as of January 5, 2026, except 
that cigarettes held in vending machines as of that date do not require that stamp. 
3. Vending machines. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, it is 
presumed that all cigarette vending machines are filled to capacity on January 5, 2026 and 
that the tax imposed by this section must be reported on that basis. A credit against this 
inventory tax must be allowed for cigarettes stamped at the rate of 150 mills per cigarette 
placed in vending machines before January 5, 2026. 
4. Payment. Payment of the tax imposed by this section must be made to the assessor 
by April 1, 2026, accompanied by forms prescribed by the assessor.
Sec. 5.  36 MRSA §4366-A, sub-§2, ¶D, as amended by PL 2007, c. 438, §93, is 
further amended to read:
D.  For stamps at the face value of 100 150 mills, the discount rate is 1.15% 0.77%.
Sec. 6.  36 MRSA §4381 is amended to read:
§4381.  Tax credited to General Fund and Fund for a Healthy Maine
The revenue derived from the tax imposed by this chapter shall must be credited to the 
General Fund of the State and, beginning in fiscal year 2027-28, to the Fund for a Healthy 
Maine, as specified in section 4410.
Sec. 7.  36 MRSA §4401, sub-§9, as amended by PL 2023, c. 613, Pt. B, §5, is 
further amended to read:
9.  Tobacco products.  "Tobacco products" means any products that are made from or 
derived from tobacco, or that contain nicotine, whether natural, synthetic or artificial, 
including, but not limited to, cigars, including premium cigars; cheroots; stogies; electronic 
smoking devices and liquids used in electronic smoking devices whether or not they contain 
nicotine; periques, granulated, plug cut, crimp cut, ready rubbed and other smoking 
tobacco; snuff; snuff flour; snus; cavendish; plug and twist tobacco; finecut and other 
chewing tobaccos; shorts; refuse scraps, clippings, cuttings and sweepings of tobacco; and 
other kinds and forms of tobacco, prepared in such manner as to be intended for human 
consumption or as is likely to be consumed, whether smoked, heated, chewed, absorbed, 
dissolved, inhaled or ingested by any other means.
Sec. 8.  36 MRSA §4403, as amended by PL 2023, c. 441, Pt. E, §§16 to 19 and 
affected by §28, is further amended to read:
§4403.  Tax on tobacco products
1.  Smokeless tobacco before January 5, 2026.  A Before January 5, 2026, a tax is 
imposed on smokeless tobacco, including chewing tobacco and snuff, at the rate of:
A.  On amounts of smokeless tobacco packaged for sale to the consumer in a package 
that contains one ounce or more of smokeless tobacco, $2.02 per ounce and prorated; 
and
B.  On smokeless tobacco packaged for sale to the consumer in a package that contains 
less than one ounce of smokeless tobacco, $2.02 per package.
Beginning January 2, 2020, the tax rates in this subsection are subject to adjustment 
pursuant to subsection 5.
1-A.  Smokeless tobacco on or after January 5, 2026.  On or after January 5, 2026, 
a tax is imposed on smokeless tobacco, including chewing tobacco and snuff, at the rate of:
A.  On amounts of smokeless tobacco packaged for sale to the consumer in a package 
that contains one ounce or more of smokeless tobacco, $3.03 per ounce and prorated; 
and
B.  On smokeless tobacco packaged for sale to the consumer in a package that contains 
less than one ounce of smokeless tobacco, $3.03 per package.
2.  Other tobacco.  Beginning January 2, 2020, and before January 1, 2024, a tax is 
imposed on all tobacco products, other than those subject to tax under subsection 1, at the 
rate of 43% of the wholesale sales price. Beginning January 1, 2024, and before January 5, 
2026, a tax is imposed on all tobacco products, other than those subject to tax under 
subsection 1, at the rate of 43% of the cost price. Beginning January 2, 2020, the tax rate 
imposed pursuant to this subsection is subject to adjustment pursuant to subsection 5 
Beginning January 5, 2026, a tax is imposed on all tobacco products, other than those 
subject to tax under subsection 1-A, at the rate of 65% of the cost price.
3.  Imposition.  The tax is imposed at the time the distributor or remote retail seller 
brings or causes to be brought into this State tobacco products that are for sale or for use or 
at the time tobacco products are manufactured or fabricated in this State for sale in this 
State.
5.  Equivalence.  If the tax on cigarettes under chapter 703 is increased after January 
2, 2020, the assessor shall calculate a rate of tax on other tobacco products under 
subsections 1 1-A and 2 that is equivalent to the same percentage change in the tax rate for 
one cigarette. The adjusted rates calculated by the assessor take effect at the same time as 
the increase in the tax on cigarettes.
A tobacco product may be taxed only once by the State in accordance with this section.
Sec. 9.  36 MRSA §4410 is enacted to read:
§4410.  Tax credited to General Fund and Fund for a Healthy Maine
Annually, beginning December 1 , 2027, the State Controller with the assistance of the 
assessor shall determine the amount of revenue from the tax imposed on cigarettes pursuant 
to chapter 703 and the tax imposed on tobacco products pursuant to this chapter needed to 
be transferred to ensure that the Fund for a Health Maine receives annually, beginning with 
the fiscal year ending June 30, 2028, and annually each fiscal year thereafter, from all 
sources, including, but not limited to, those specified in Title 8, section 1036, subsection 2, 
paragraph E and Title 22, section 1511, subsection 2, a total of no less than $65,000,000.  
The State Controller shall transfer the amount determined pursuant to this section no later 
than the end of the fiscal year in which the determination is made.
The balance of revenues from the tax imposed on cigarettes pursuant to chapter 703 
and the tax imposed on tobacco products pursuant to this chapter after the transfer described 
in this section must be credited to the General Fund.
Sec. 10.  Effective date. This Act takes effect January 5, 2026.
SUMMARY
This bill, beginning January 5, 2026, increases the cigarette excise tax rate by 50 mills, 
changing the rate per pack of 20 cigarettes from $2 to $3, and the rate per cigarette from 
10¢ to 15¢.  Under current law, when the cigarette tax increases, the tax on tobacco products 
also increases by an equivalent amount. The bill includes in the excise tax on tobacco 
products that equivalent increase and specifies that the definition of "tobacco products" 
includes products with synthetic nicotine.
The bill also, beginning in fiscal year 2027-28, requires the State Tax Assessor and the 
State Controller to annually determine the amount of revenue from the taxes on cigarettes 
and tobacco products that is needed to ensure the Fund for a Healthy Maine receives at 
least $65,000,000 annually from all sources of revenue, including from the so-called 
tobacco settlement and from certain slot machine income.