AUGUSTA -- The load Maine taxpayers shoulder compared to other states may not be as high as some have suggested, officials say.

Unfortunately, any change in the state's standing likely would be insignificant.

The level of taxation can be an important yardstick in any state profile, both for its own citizens and as part of financial decisions made by outsiders to relocate or invest here.

Maine consistently ranks near the top when the financial burdens on state taxpayers are compared nationally using U.S. Census Bureau statistics.

The most recent census rankings from 2004-05 show Maine fourth highest in tax burden, which compares total state and local taxes with personal income -- down from the highest rating in 1997-98, according to information supplied by the Maine Development Foundation's Ed Cervone.

Among other New England states, Vermont was sixth, Rhode Island was eighth, Connecticut 12th and Massachusetts 33rd.

Comparing Maine's per capita tax rate with other states and the District of Columbia, Maine ranked 14th in 2005, down from 12th place in 2000 but up from 21st place in 1992.

In 2005, the District of Columbia ranked highest in per capita taxes, followed by New York, Connecticut, Wyoming, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Alaska, Hawaii, Maryland, Rhode Island, Vermont, Minnesota, California and Maine.

"When you look at tax expenditures per capita, Maine is reasonable," explained Laurie Lachance, a former state economist who now serves as chief executive officer of the Maine Development Foundation.

"It's when you look at taxes compared with income, or our ability to pay, that it becomes more problematic and we're ranked higher."

Jeff Austin, an official with the Maine Municipal Association who looked into the way the Census Bureau gathers those numbers, is convinced differences in the way property taxes are collected in Maine and some other New England states may cause artificially high tax rates to be reported here.

Austin said even if his suspicions are correct, the change would likely only drop Maine a few places in the tax standings. But given the sensitivity of the issue for Maine politicians, even small changes can be significant.

Austin is a legislative advocate for MMA, which represents most Maine cities and towns.

"You still want to make sure the data in the tax burden is always accurate," Austin said. "The Maine Revenue Service and the Maine Municipal Association have felt for some time the tax burden figures are high."

The figures reported by the Census Bureau, which include both state, municipal, county and school taxes, are used by national organizations interested in comparing the taxes paid in different states across the U.S.

Austin spent last summer researching suspicions that the Census data overstates Maine's property taxes.

In a sampling of census reports from communities in Kennebec and Cumberland counties, Austin found that many municipal officials apparently misinterpreted instructions for the census survey and reported the total amount of property taxes they collected.

Towns and cities are supposed to report only the property taxes they collect for municipal functions.

But municipal officials in Maine also collect property taxes for county governments and, in some cases, for regional school districts.

Austin's research indicates many municipalities may report the total amount of taxes they collect. When census officials obtain similar information from county and school officials, taxes supporting those services may be counted twice, he explained.

Maine Revenue Services officials, the state's taxation bureau, compile similar information from municipalities.

Austin said the figure they come up with for total property tax collections in Maine is more than $200 million lower than the number identified by the U.S. Census Bureau. He suspects the difference is caused by municipal, county and school officials reporting some of the same tax revenues.

In the past, some municipal officials also have listed motor vehicle excise taxes incorrectly on the census forms, he said.

Jennifer Whitaker, chief of the U.S. Census Bureau's office for municipal public finance analysis, said census officials had been unaware of the possible double counting of Maine property taxes until they were contacted by Austin.

Whitaker said federal officials provide detailed instructions that should have avoided double counting of county and school district property taxes if those instructions are followed correctly.

Whitaker said census officials are just completing their analysis of 2006 as 2007 information is just starting to roll in. Now that the problem has been identified, they will be looking for any discrepancies. But a true comparison may require them to wait for last year's results to be completed to gauge the extent of the discrepancy.

"If we know there is a problem, we'll go back and revise," she said.

In 2006, a legislative study identified similar suspicions using 2002 census reports, the latest available at the time.

Legislative analysts cautioned that comparison of different state's tax systems is difficult due to complicated differences in the ways they collect revenues.

Comparisons between states can also be made using various criteria, ranking total taxes per capita or in relation to average personal income. Maine tends to rank higher when combined state and local taxes are compared with personal income.

In 2005, for example, Maine ranked fourth when total taxes were compared with personal income, but 14th in state and local taxes in per capita.

Michael Allen, director of the Maine Revenue Service's econometric research, said state officials have found some double counting of local taxes. The legislative study was largely based on Allen's research.

"It's been a problem for a number of years," Allen said.

But correcting those mistakes would have limited effect, he said.

"It might move us a little bit," the widely-respected state economist said. "We have not been one or two (nationally in comparisons of Maine taxes with personal income) in quite a while. Last year, the Census Bureau put out state and local tax data for fiscal year 2005 and in that year we were fifth.

"A couple of hundred million could move us from the middle of the top 10 to the back end of the top 10," he said.

Each year, the Census Bureau estimates information about local government revenues and expenditures based on a survey sample. But every five years -- in years ending with the numeral 2 or 7 -- the Census Bureau asks all municipalities, counties and school districts to fill out a 21-page financial survey, Austin explained.

As a result, Maine Municipal Association officials have been trying to provide better direction to local officials as they fill out the census reporting forms.

Whitaker said her agency is looking for changes that might result from the Maine Municipal Association's efforts.

"We'll just see if we notice any difference from the numbers," Austin said. "If the census property tax estimates are still very high compared to the Maine Revenue Service estimates, we'll know we haven't accomplished our task and we'll have to keep at it."

Gary Remal -- 621-5642

gremal@centralmaine.com