An Act To Require Same-year State Valuations for Education Funding Purposes for Municipalities That Lose More Than 35 Percent of Their Tax Base

Sec. 1. 20-A MRSA §15672, sub-§23, ¶¶B and C,  as enacted by PL 2013, c. 203, §1, are amended to read:

Sec. 2. 20-A MRSA §15672, sub-§23, ¶D  is enacted to read:

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.