New legislation in Maine will change the taxation of certain services from sales tax to a Service Provider Tax. Those services include: Extended cable television services, fabrication services, videotape and machine rental services, rent-to-own services for furniture and audio equipment, telecommunication services, including installation, maintenance and repair, and private non-medical institution services. The new law, effective July 1, 2004, will be imposed at a 5% rate, which means it will be “transparent to purchasers of these services.” However, providers of the services will need to re-register for the service provider tax and will see some changes in the way the tax is administered. The main change will be the provider’s obligation to identify the tax to its customers as a “service provider tax” rather than a sales tax. This means that the tax is imposed on the retailer rather than the consumer, even though the tax can be passed on the customer. (Maine Revenue Services, Important Information Law Change – Service Provider Tax, Effective July 1, 2004)