The federal government says Penobscot County owes nearly $360,000 in unpaid taxes and penalties, but the county insists the amount has already been paid.
A lien was filed against Penobscot County on Tuesday by the United States and the Internal Revenue Service. It says the county has not paid $359,381.03 in taxes, interest and penalties from 2021 to 2023, even after the federal government demanded payment.
The county is in the middle of trying to figure out the “confusion” that led to the lien, County Administrator Scott Adkins said Thursday. It’s been difficult for the county to get in touch with someone from the IRS.
“I’m sure the changes in the federal government is having somewhat of an effect,” Adkins said. The IRS has lost more than 26,000 employees in 2025, dropping to fewer than 76,000 people, the agency said in June.
Federal law prohibits the IRS from commenting on specific taxpayer situations, a spokesperson told the Bangor Daily News.
It’s unclear what the lien means for Penobscot County and how it will be resolved. An IRS lien is filed when tax bills have not been paid. It alerts creditors to the unpaid bill and attaches to all assets as the government attempts to lay claim to its money.
All payments were made and cleared the bank, Adkins said.
“The issue is the actual information was not received which causes confusion on the federal side,” Adkins said.
Multiple notices go out before a lien is filed to give the person or organization a chance to fix the discrepancy, said Robert Libby, a Maine-based former tax assessor who now does tax preparation.
It’s not unheard of for things to get mixed up at the IRS, Libby said. For example, there could be two employer identification numbers, where the money owed is under one number and the money paid is under the other number, he said. Those numbers may not be automatically connected.
The majority of the lien against Penobscot County comes from two civil penalties. The document does not specify the cause of the penalties. However, it is likely because the county failed to file forms confirming employees were covered by health insurance, Libby said.
He knows of two other municipalities that have been assessed similar penalties and suspects Penobscot County has run into that issue.
The IRS this spring resumed levying accounts after an extended pause during the pandemic. That means the IRS could collect the funds it is owed after 21 days, Libby said.
That could result in paychecks from Penobscot County bouncing, Libby said.
