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Bath officials urge higher state reimbursements for business equipment tax exemption as BIW growth shifts burden to homeowners
Summary
City of Bath officials and municipal representatives told the Taxation Committee LD 1206 would gradually raise state reimbursement for the Business Equipment Tax Exemption (BETI) after Bath saw BETI‑eligible value grow nearly ninefold since 2012 — most of it at Bath Iron Works — leaving residential taxpayers to cover lost revenue.
Sen. Denise Tepler and officials from the city of Bath urged the Joint Standing Committee on Taxation to pass LD 1206, legislation to increase the state reimbursement percentage for the Business Equipment Tax Exemption (BETI) that exempts certain personal property from municipal taxation to encourage business investment.
Sen. Tepler told the committee BETI was designed to encourage capital investment and that the state payment to municipalities has declined while the exemption base has grown dramatically in some places. ‘‘In the District I represent, the City of Bath has a unique dilemma,’’ Tepler said, noting the value claimed under BETI in Bath rose from $28.2 million in 2012 to $251.2 million in 2024.
Bath city leaders said the growth of…
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