USA Today: Governor LePage’s tax cuts are working for low-income Mainers

Portland’s “rich” pay higher share of taxes; low-income families pay no income tax

AUGUSTA –A report in USA Today that compares tax burdens nationwide confirms that Governor Paul R. LePage’s income tax cut has worked to reduce the tax burden on Maine’s low-income families. See story here.

The Governor passed the largest tax cut Maine history, reducing the income tax rate from 8.5% to 7.95%. Two-thirds of Maine taxpayers benefited from income tax relief, and 70,000 low-income Mainers no longer pay income tax.

“Maine liberals falsely label this historic tax relief as ‘tax cuts for the rich’,” Governor LePage said. “But, as this report points out, the rich in Portlandundefinedthe liberals’ flagship cityundefinedpay more than their fair share, while low-income Mainers have enjoyed tax relief because of our income tax cut."

The story, “Top 10 Cities with the Highest Tax Rates,” which was posted on Monday, Feb. 17, states:

Taxes in Portland are actually quite favorable to lower-income residents. A family of three earning $25,000 had no income tax burden and paid just $568 in the state sales taxes.

At the other end of the spectrum, however, wealthier families faced especially high tax burdens. A hypothetical family earning $150,000 spent $22,463, or 15%, of their income on state and local taxes.

In 2011, Governor Paul LePage lowered the state's' highest income tax rate and eliminated state income taxes for many low-income Mainers.

The story is based on a report released by the Office of Revenue Analysis of the government of the District of Columbia. The report reviewed the property, sales, auto and income taxes for families at various income levels in the largest city within each state. The story notes that the property tax burden is high in Portland, a city where local budgets are controlled by liberals.