Sec. 1. 20-A MRSA §12302, sub-§4, as enacted by PL 1999, c. 401, Pt. NN, §2 and affected by §4 and enacted by c. 496, §2, is amended to read:

4. Maximum amount. The maximum loan or loan repayment amount available to each participant is $20,000 $25,000 per year for a period of up to 4 years.

Sec. 2. 36 MRSA §5219-W is enacted to read:

§5219-W.__Credit for providing dental medicine to certain areas

A taxpayer who has entered into a loan repayment agreement pursuant to the Maine Dental Education Loan Program is allowed a credit against the tax imposed under this Part equal to the amount of loan forgiveness that the taxpayer is granted pursuant to Title 20-A, section 12302, subsection 5.

SUMMARY

This bill increases the amount of student loan forgiveness a dentist may receive through the Maine Dental Education Loan Program, which is administered by the Finance Authority of Maine, from $20,000 per year to $25,000 per year.

The bill also exempts from state income tax the amount of loan forgiveness when the dentist elects to serve as a practitioner of dental medicine in an underserved population area pursuant to the terms of the program.