AUBURN – A printing glitch on the city’s 2008-09 tax bills made the line for Homestead Exemptions blank.

Finance Director Denise Brown said the total amount due on individual property tax bills is correct and taxpayers who qualify for the exemption are getting it. The city finished mailing 8,707 tax bills to taxpayers Thursday. Those bills should begin arriving in mailboxes on Friday or Saturday.

The Homestead Exemption amount was accidentally printed in another line, Brown said. “It’s showing all of the exemptions a taxpayer receives in the ‘other exemptions.’ But the tax bills were calculated correctly.”

Under the Homestead Exemption, full-time Maine residents do not have to pay taxes on the first $13,000 of their primary homestead’s value. To qualify, they must have made a Maine residence their primary home for at least 12 months.

The state also provides exemptions for the blind and for veterans.

Brown said the mistake wasn’t noticed until after the bills had been printed and mailed. Anyone with questions or concerns should contact the city tax office, 333-6601 extension 1178.

The first half of the tax bill is due by Sept. 15. The remaining amount is due by March 16, 2009.