| | | Emergency preamble. Whereas, Acts of the Legislature do not become | | effective until 90 days after adjournment unless enacted as | | emergencies; and |
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| | | Whereas, the residents of the State are burdened by the large | | portion of their incomes that they must pay to property taxes; | | and |
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| | | Whereas, a delay of relief provided by the Maine Residents | | Property Tax Program places an additional economic burden on the | | residents of the State; and |
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| | | Whereas, filing for the Maine Residents Property Tax Program | | begins August 1st of this year; and |
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| | | Whereas, the State Tax Assessor will need time to prepare for | | the changes to the Maine Residents Property Tax Program provided | | in this legislation; and |
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| | | Whereas, in the judgment of the Legislature, these facts create | | an emergency within the meaning of the Constitution of Maine and | | require the following legislation as immediately necessary for | | the preservation of the public peace, health and safety; now, | | therefore, |
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| | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: |
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| | | Sec. 1. 36 MRSA §6201, sub-§2, as amended by PL 1995, c. 368, Pt. CCC, | | §5 and affected by §11, is further amended to read: |
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| | | 2. Claimant. "Claimant" means an individual who has filed a | | claim under this chapter and was domiciled in this State and | occupied a homestead in this State during the entire | | 6 months of the calendar year preceding the year in which claim | | for relief under this chapter is filed. Regardless of how many | | names of individuals appear on the property deed, the person who | | meets the qualifications described in this subsection and proves | | sole responsibility for the payment of the property taxes on the | | subject property is the claimant for that property. If 2 or more | | individuals meet the qualifications in this subsection and share | | the payment of the rent or the responsibility for the payment of | | the property taxes, each individual may apply on the basis of the | | rent paid or the property taxes levied on the homestead that | | reflect the ownership percentage of the claimant and the | | claimant's household. |
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| | | If 2 or more individuals claim the same property, the matter must | | be referred to the State Tax Assessor whose decision is final. | | Ownership of a homestead under this chapter may be by fee, by |
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