Anyone renting a car in Maine would be paying the state 12.5% of their bill in excise taxes starting last month if the legislature there had its way.
But residents blocked the state’s new tax-reform law — which included a tax increase from 10% to 12.5% on rental car bills — by signing petitions in opposition. If the signatures on the petitions turn out to be valid, the increase will be put to a vote in June, says Sara Lewis, a Maine taxation official.
The action in Maine represents something of a victory for business travelers, corporate travel departments and rental-car companies who are increasingly upset over what’s been an explosion in taxes imposed on renting a car.
Airline fees "are bad, but the worst are car-rental taxes," says frequent business traveler Tony Harrison, who has rented cars 75 days so far this year and paid upwards of 20% of his bill in taxes in some cities.
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