Gov. Paul LePage, who generally opposes all new taxes, pushed to lift the exemption on newspapers and magazines in the last legislative session, arguing that only a handful of states allow them to be tax free.
But some say the new tax — which the state estimates will bring in about $6 million over the next two fiscal years — puts a regulatory burden on newspapers with limited resources and staff while taxing buyers.
The newspaper tax come as Maine's sales tax rises on Tuesday to 5.5 percent from 5 percent and the meals and lodging tax is boosted to 8 percent from 7 percent. LePage vetoed the state's $6.3 billion budget because of those increases.
