AUGUSTA (AP) – Lawmakers from Portland and Bangor say the Legislature won’t consider a local-option sales tax to build new civic centers during the current session.

The issue is important because the cities don’t want local property taxes to be used for expensive civic centers or convention centers. And the delay in lawmakers taking up the tax issue will serve to prolong debate over the new facilities for at least another year.

“Up here I am not getting the vibe people see it as an urgent need,” said state Rep. Edward Suslovic, D-Portland.

The Cumberland County Civic Center in Portland and the Bangor Auditorium and Civic Center are aging buildings with limited space for conventions. The Cumberland County center faces competition from newer, bigger, out-of-state arenas, while the Bangor Auditorium suffers from structural problems. New centers could boost the local economies, adding jobs and increasing traffic at local businesses, civic center representatives in Bangor and Portland say.

The Cumberland County Civic Center Board of Trustees decided to pursue changes in tax law in response to a report completed last May that found a local sales tax for meals and lodging was the best way to fund a new center.

The report came too late for last year’s legislative session, so leaders saw the 2004 session, which started last week, as an important opportunity.

Trustees want the authority to increase the meals and lodging tax by 1 percent or raise the overall sales tax, to raise funds for the county to pay for a new civic center. Bangor, Presque Isle and Lewiston also said they support a local-option tax as a way to build or renovate their own buildings.

The communities are starting to come together on the issue through informal talks. Bangor tried on its own to get a local-option tax passed two years ago for its auditorium and failed. Together, representatives from the four communities believe they have a better chance.

The strategy, however, has not yet worked in Augusta.

The Legislature and Gov. John Baldacci are focused on more immediate concerns, such as local property tax relief and an increase in state funding for local schools. The Legislature’s Taxation Committee favors a local option sales tax that would send 80 percent of revenue to communities for property tax relief.

Baldacci’s office, the Maine Municipal Association, the Maine Education Association and the Maine State Chamber of Commerce are negotiating a tax reform package, but those involved say it will not include a local-option tax for civic center projects.

The debate over a local-option sales tax dates back at least two decades. The two groups who will oppose it are rural lawmakers, who see their constituents paying the taxes but not getting the benefits, and conservative lawmakers who oppose it because it is a tax increase.

“Any local option is very tough to sell to the full Legislature,” said state Rep. Joseph Perry, D-Bangor.

AP-ES-01-12-04 1052EST