Maine State Chamber President issues statement on tax conformity for Paycheck Protection Program loans

The Maine State Chamber of Commerce urges state legislators to provide full tax conformity on Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans for all Maine businesses, regardless of the amount of the loan.

    The Maine State Chamber thanks Governor Janet Mills for her leadership on this issue. Her proposal to the legislature providing full tax conformity for all Maine businesses with PPP loans up to $1 million is greatly appreciated. This proposal applies to 99.1% of Maine businesses and demonstrates she listened and responded to the concerns of the business community and the hardships they continue to face due to the pandemic.
    However, the $18 million needed to provide both benefits of full conformity for the 251 Maine businesses with loans exceeding $1 million should also be addressed.
    We know that the prevailing factor in the loan amount a business receives is directly related to the number of employees they have. They should not be penalized because of it.
    Nor should they be penalized because they, like most other businesses, regardless of the loan amount, have also faced difficulties caused by the pandemic and deserve similar consideration. They, like all businesses, were expecting to receive full conformity as Congress intended and confirmed in late December of 2020. Without full tax conformity, these 251 businesses will be taking on further tax obligations they have not planned for.
    From an economic standpoint, we believe all Maine businesses should be treated equally as all Maine businesses contribute to the success of our state’s economy. While we continue to be appreciative of the Governor’s hard work on this issue, we urge the legislature to find the $18 million necessary to enable 100% of Maine businesses to receive the benefits of full tax conformity for Paycheck Protection Program loans.