Exemptions & Refund Programs

• Veterans Exemption Form
• Homestead Exemption Form
• Widows Exemption Form
• Circuit Breaker Program

Maine law provides an exemption from a portion of the assessed value of their legal residence for servicemen and women and their survivors. There are a number of tests that must be met before the exemption is granted.

• Age - unless qualifying because of a 100% service-connected disability, the veteran must have reached 62 years of age on or before April 1 of the year first qualifying.
• Residence: the veteran must be a legal resident of the municipality. (Only one exemption per serviceman.)
• Service in Federal War Period: Applicant must have served during a federally recognized war period, and been honorably discharged. These periods are:
• World War II - 12/7/41 - 12/31/46
• Korean Conflict - 6/27/50 - 1/31/55
• Vietnam Conflict - 8/5/64 - 5/7/75
• Desert Storm - 7/7/90 - 4/11/91
• Application: Written application for the exemption must be made to the Assessing Department on or before April 1 of the year first seeking exemption. Forms are available at the Assessor's Office. Applications must be accompanied by copies of either a Form DD-214, or by a birth certificate and honorable discharge certificate.
• Widows of servicemen who would qualify were they still living are eligible for the exemption.
• The amount of the exemption is currently $6,000 of assessed value.

In 1998, the Maine Legislature authorized a program to relieve the property tax burden of homeowners. This program is still in effect and will reduce the amount of your property taxes. Homeowners who applied in 1998 remain in the program; there is no need to re-enroll. The basic requirements are:

• the property must be your legal residence.
• you must have owned the property for 12 months.
• if you only owned it part of that time, you still may qualify if you owned a homestead elsewhere in Maine for the remainder of that period.
• you must apply to the Assessor's Office on or before April 1 of the year for which the exemption is sought.
• the exemption is a $10,000 reduction in the assessed value of a qualifying homestead.
• application forms are available from the Assessing Department.

The "Circuit Breaker" program was repealed by the Maine Legislature in 2013.  It has been replaced by a "property tax fairness credit," that is available to qualified individuals when filing Maine Income Tax forms.

As an incentive to promote economic growth, the State of Maine will reimburse the property taxes paid on certain business machinery and equipment placed in service after April 1, 1995. The reimbursement may be claimed for up to 12 years. To receive this refund, businesses must declare the items to the local assessor. Application forms and further information are available from the Assessing Department.

You have the right to request an abatement of your property taxes based on your belief that your property is over-valued for the purposes of assessment or if there is any illegality, error, or irregularity in assessment. A property tax may be high, as compared with the tax on similar property in some other town, if the taxable resources of the town in which the property is taxable are poor, or if the needs of the town as reflected by appropriations are great. Thus the mere fact that a property tax is high is not grounds for seeking abatement. The property owner must make written application to the Board of Assessment review within 185 days of the date of the annual tax commitment. Please address any further questions or concerns to the Assessing Department.