Tax Expenditure Working Group reaches out for public comment on process

The Maine State Chamber submitted comments to the Tax Expenditure Working Group regarding reviews conducted by the Office of Program Evaluation and Government Accountability (OPEGA) at its meeting on October 22. The Maine State Chamber’s comments centered on the continued success of Maine’s tax incentives and programs and the fact that they are working as intended. Below is the Maine State Chamber’s letter to the working group, submitted by Linda Caprara, senior government relations specialist, on October 21, 2021.

“Good morning, Senator Libby, Representative Terry, and members of the Tax Expenditure Working Group:

Let me say overall, we feel very confident that the tax incentives and programs Maine has available are in fact working the way they were intended. That is, these programs help and keep Maine businesses competitive in the global marketplace by attracting capital investment to Maine and by creating and retaining Maine jobs. We firmly believe this. We also believe that Maine’s tax incentives are modest, and if Maine did not have what it has available to businesses, today, it would make us less competitive overall.

These programs are in fact working because they are being used. We also believe because of this these programs are self-regulating. The investment is made then the company gets the benefit. As designed, Maine’s incentives and programs only benefit companies that have already made the investments or created new jobs. This is unlike other states that often offer incentives up front before the actual investments are made. Lastly, we do support the continued solicitation of comments from the public and the business community. We feel this is absolutely important and necessary.

Ultimately, it is up to the Legislature to decide whether to continue these reviews and whether the scope of the reviews should be changed in some capacity. As always, we are available to provide any additional feedback this group would like.”

The group was formed to provide recommendations to the Government Oversight Committee (GOC) on any needed changes to OPEGA’s review process. These items include, but are not limited to, the number of reviews OPEGA should be conducting in any given year, whether OPEGA should focus strictly on business tax expenditures, whether the reviews be full reviews or expedited reviews, etc.

The Tax Expenditure Working Group has held several meetings to discuss these issues and more. The group will hold a work session on Friday, November 5 at 9:00 a.m. to resume discussions on OPEGA’s work in reviewing tax expenditures. If you have any questions, please contact Linda Caprara by calling (207) 623-4568 or by emailing lcaprara@mainechamber.org.