Sports pool operators may accept wagers on all professional or amateur sports events except high school sports events and other events in which a majority of the participants are minors. Sports pool operators may not accept wagers from persons whose identity they cannot verify; persons under 18 years of age; the director, officers and employees of the sports pool operator and relatives living in the same household as those persons; athletes, coaches, referees and umpires participating in the sports event; other interested persons including persons who own more than 50% of the legal or beneficial interest in any team if the sports event upon which the wager is placed is overseen by the person's league or sports governing body; persons with confidential information that could affect the outcome of the sports event; persons who are on a list of persons who are to be excluded or removed from a sports wagering lounge established by the board, including persons who voluntarily request to be excluded; and persons who make wagers on behalf of another person.

The bill requires the board to adopt rules regulating the operation of sports pools, including rules restricting the types of wagers permitted, establishing the maximum wagers that may be accepted from any one person on a single sports event, regulating the design and minimum security standards for in-person sports wagering lounges located within a commercial track or off-track betting facility and establishing record-keeping, reporting and auditing requirements.

The bill further requires that 18% of net sports pool income be transferred to the board for distribution as follows: 1% for administrative expenses of the board; 2% for primary and secondary school education in the State; 2% for the Maine Community College System's scholarships program; 2% to the Agricultural Fair Support Fund; 2% to the fund used to supplement harness racing purses; 2% to the Fund to Encourage Racing at Maine's Commercial Tracks; 2% to the Fund to Stabilize Off-track Betting Facilities; and 5% to be divided equally among the tribal governments of the federally recognized Indian tribes in the State.

Finally, the bill provides that the laws governing unlawful gambling and games of chance do not apply to sports pool operators that comply with the laws governing sports pools.

This bill proposes to specify the black-capped chickadee or the boreal chickadee as the state bird.

With the exception of certain commercial motor vehicles and buses and special mobile equipment, current law requires that the excise tax be based upon the maker's list price for the motor vehicle or mobile home; the excise tax on certain commercial motor vehicles and buses and special mobile equipment is based on the purchase price. This bill requires that the excise tax for all motor vehicles, mobile homes and camper trailers be based upon the actual value of the vehicle or mobile home at the time of delivery to the owner, as determined by sources approved by the State Tax Assessor.

Current law requires the State to reimburse a municipality for the difference in the amount of excise tax that would have been collected by the municipality on each commercial motor vehicle or bus using the manufacturer's suggested retail price instead of the actual purchase price. This bill applies that requirement to all vehicles registered and taxed by the municipality using the actual value.

• 1. Decreasing the lowest rate from 5.8% to 5.2% for tax years 2020 and 2021 and to 5% beginning in 2022;
• 2. Decreasing the middle rate from 6.75% to 6.3% for tax years 2020 and 2021 and to 6% beginning in 2022; and
• 3. Decreasing the highest rate from 7.15% to 7.05% for tax years 2020 and 2021 and to 7% beginning in 2022.

This bill also changes cross-references in the Tax Relief Fund for Maine Residents and inflation adjustment statutes.

• 1. Is, and has been for the 5 years prior to application, a corporation or limited liability company organized under the laws of the State;
• 2. Has been headquartered in this State for the 5 years prior to application;
• 3. Pays at least 75% of its employees a salary that exceeds the income threshold for the county in which the facility that is the subject of the application is located;
• 4. Agrees to make an investment of at least $35,000,000 in the construction or expansion in this State of a facility for that business; and
• 5. Adds a total of 40 new full-time employees by the end of the first year of qualifying for the tax credit, maintains that number for the next 2 years and then adds 20 more full-time employees, maintaining a total of 60 full-time employees for each year after the 3rd year of qualifying for the tax credit. The employees added must be based in the State.