Hurricane Island Foundation v. Town of Vinalhaven
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The Supreme Judicial Court vacated the judgment of the superior court that reversed and modified the decision of the tax assessor of the Town of Vinalhaven denying Hurricane Island Foundation a local property tax exemption under Me. Rev. Stat. 36, 652(1)(B), holding that the Town's tax assessor correctly denied the tax exemption.
In denying the Foundation's application, the Town's tax assessor concluded that the Foundation failed to meet the standard for a "literary and scientific" institution under the statute. The superior court twice remanded the case. For both the second and the third time, the assessor denied the tax exemption to the Foundation. The superior court modified the decision to designate the Foundation as tax exempt, concluding that there was an error of law in the assessor's decision. The Supreme Judicial Court vacated the judgment below and remanded for the court to enter a judgment declaring that the Foundation was not exempt, holding that the Foundation failed to show it was a "scientific" institution.
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