Maine broadcasters get tax break

[Dib9@aol.com]

The Maine Legislature today overrid the Governor's veto of a bill that will 
allow exemptions from the 5 percent sales tax on equipment purchased by Maine 
broadcasters to produce radio and television signals. 

http://www.boston.com/dailynews/114/region/Legislature_hurtles_toward_adj:.sht

ml

The argument for the exemption is that purchases of manufacturing equipment, 
including newspaper printing presses, are exempt from the state sales tax and 
that television stations are under a mandate to convert to HDTV.  On the 
other hand, most of the businesses that will benefit from this tax break are 
large, public corporations headquartered out of state.  The money saved from 
the tax break will go from Maine state coffers to the corporate executives 
and shareholders.

I was surprised by the Governor's veto of the bill because he became well 
known in the state from his years as the host of MaineWatch on public 
television.

-- Dan Billings, Bowdoinham, Maine