08 HB
1035/AP
House
Bill 1035 (AS PASSED HOUSE AND SENATE)
By:
Representatives Smith of the
129th,
Sheldon of the
105th,
Floyd of the
147th,
Rogers of the
26th,
May of the
111th,
and others
A
BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
AN ACT
To
amend Chapter 8 of Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating
to sales and use taxes, so as to provide for a 1 percent sales tax to be used to
fund transportation purposes in regional commission areas within the state; to
provide for the development of a list of transportation purposes and projects by
the regional development commission in cooperation with the Department of
Transportation; to provide for an opt out of the plan by the county governing
authority in each county within the regional commission area; to provide for the
regional commission to pass a resolution calling for a referendum within the
participating counties; to provide for the tax to be levied by the participating
counties; to provide for the funds collected to be deposited in regional
accounts with the Department of Transportation; to provide for the Department of
Transportation to implement the contracting and constructing of the
transportation projects on the regional lists; to provide for exemptions; to
provide for a phase in of the transportation purposes fund in the Department of
Transportation; to amend Code Section 48-9-3 of the Official Code of Georgia
Annotated, relating to the motor fuel tax, so as to extend the expiration date
for the exemption from the motor fuel tax for certain public transit and public
campus transportation systems; to provide for related matters; to provide for a
conditional effective date; to provide for automatic repeal; to repeal
conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION
1.
Chapter
8 of Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to sales and
use taxes, is amended by adding a new article to read as follows:
"ARTICLE
5
48-8-220.
(a)
As used in this Code section, transportation purposes shall include, but not be
limited to, roads, freight and passenger rail, bridges, airports, public
transit, buses, seaports, and all accompanying infrastructure and
services.
(b)
In accordance with the provisions of Article IX, Section IV, Paragraph V of the
Constitution, on or after July 1, 2009, a sales and use tax of 1 percent,
limited to a specified period of time, to fund transportation purposes in a
regional commission area may be levied as provided in this Code section.
(c)
There are created within this state special transportation districts. The
geographical boundary of each regional commission area, as defined in Article 2
of Chapter 8 of Title 50, shall correspond with and shall be conterminous with
the geographical boundary of one of the special transportation districts. When
the levy of a regional area transportation tax is authorized according to the
procedures of this Code section, the counties within the special transportation
district shall levy a sales and use tax. The tax under this Code section shall
be collected by the Department of Revenue and deposited with the Department of
Transportation to be expended within the special transportation district and
shall be levied within such special transportation district only upon approval
by a majority of the qualified voters residing within the limits of the
special transportation district, as tabulated by a district-wide vote, voting
in a referendum thereon.
(d)
Prior to calling for the referendum authorized by this Code section, the
regional commission shall create, in cooperation with the Department of
Transportation, a list of transportation purposes to be funded within the
special transportation district. The formulation of the list of transportation
purposes shall conform to federal transportation law where applicable. In order
to be approved, the list shall receive a majority vote of the publicly elected
members of the regional commission. In addition, and also by a majority vote,
the regional commission shall determine the maximum period of time the tax shall
be levied, and the maximum cost of such projects for transportation purposes.
The proposal shall then be submitted for approval to each county governing
authority within the regional commission area. Each county governing authority
shall have 45 days from the time the list is approved by the regional commission
to vote to opt out of the special transportation district for purposes of
levying the tax authorized by this Code section. In order for a county
governing authority to opt out of the special transportation district, a
majority vote of the county governing authority shall be required. If any
county governing authority opts out of the proposal, any of the other county
governing authorities in the regional commission area shall have 15 days in
which to reconsider voting to opt out, at the discretion of the county governing
authority. If a county governing authority opts out of the special
transportation district, no referendum shall be held in that county and no tax
under the provisions of this Code section shall be levied in that county. The
counties that do not opt out of the special transportation district, within the
time limits prescribed in this Code section, shall be the taxing authorities for
purposes of any tax under the provisions of this Code section.
(e)
After the votes to opt out are completed by the county governing authorities,
the regional commission, in cooperation with the Department of Transportation,
may revise the list of transportation purposes, if necessary, to amend any
projects on the list that were planned in a county that has elected to opt out
of the special transportation district. Upon the completion of the revision of
the list, the regional commission may, upon a majority vote of the publicly
elected members, pass a resolution calling for a referendum of the qualified
voters voting on the referendum in the participating counties in the special
transportation district to approve or disapprove of the levy of the tax provided
for in this Code section.
(f)
Except as otherwise provided in this Code section, the procedures for conducting
the referendum on the question of imposing the tax and for submitting the
question again to the voters in the event the tax is not approved shall
correspond generally to the procedures provided for by Part 1 of Article 3 of
Chapter 8 of Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to the
special county 1 percent sales and use tax, as now or hereafter amended.
Proceedings for the reimposition of such tax shall be in the same manner as
proceedings for the initial imposition of the tax, but the newly authorized tax
shall not be imposed until the expiration of the tax then in
effect.
(g)
A resolution by the regional commission calling for the levy of the tax and the
ballot submitting the question of the levy of the tax to the voters of the
special transportation district shall describe:
(1)
The specific transportation purposes to be funded;
(2)
The approximate cost of such projects for transportation purposes, the total
cost of which shall also be the maximum amount of net proceeds to be raised by
the tax; and
(3)
The maximum period of time, to be stated in calendar years, for which the tax
may be levied.
(h)
If the tax provided for in this Code section is approved by a majority of the
voters in the special transportation district, the tax shall be levied by the
participating counties in the special transportation district. The funds
received from the tax shall be collected by the Department of Revenue and
deposited in accounts managed by the Department of Transportation that are
divided according to the special transportation district from which the funds
were collected. Under the authority of Article IX, Section IV, Paragraph V of
the Constitution, these funds shall be used for transportation purposes and
projects on the list approved by the voters in the special transportation
district. The Department of Transportation shall be responsible for designing,
planning, and contracting for the construction of the projects.
(i)
Nothing in this Code section shall prohibit counties and municipalities located
in the special transportation district from imposing as additional taxes local
sales and use taxes authorized by general law.
(j)
The tax imposed pursuant to this Code section shall not be subject to and shall
not count with respect to any general law limitation regarding the maximum
amount of local sales and use taxes which may be levied in any jurisdiction in
this state.
(k)
The tax imposed pursuant to this Code section shall not apply to and shall not
be levied on:
(1)
The sale or use of any type of fuel used for off road heavy-duty equipment, off
road farm or agricultural equipment, locomotives, aircraft, or watercraft;
(2)
The sale or use of fuel that is used for propulsion of motor vehicles on the
public highways. For purposes of this paragraph, a motor vehicle means a
self-propelled vehicle designed for operation or required to be licensed for
operation upon the public highways;
(3)
The sale or use of tangible personal property used in the production or
generation of energy; or
(4)
The sale or use of energy used in the manufacturing or processing of tangible
goods primarily for resale.
(l)
Except as otherwise specifically provided in this Code section, the tax imposed
pursuant to this Code section shall be subject to any sales and use tax
exemption which is otherwise imposed by general law; provided, however, that the
tax imposed pursuant to this Code section shall be levied on the sale of food or
beverages as provided for in paragraph (57) of Code Section 48-8-3.
(m)
The tax imposed pursuant to this Code section shall only be levied on the first
$5,000.00 of any transaction subject to the tax.
(n)
An amount equal to not less than 100 percent of the total amount of proceeds
collected in a special transportation district shall be expended within that
special transportation district on transportation purposes as approved in the
referendum of the voters in the special transportation district and shall not be
subject to any existing fund allocation or distribution
requirements.
(o)
The Department of Transportation shall conduct continuing studies and monitoring
of the status of economic parity throughout the State of Georgia for the
contracting of transportation projects with particular emphasis on the
procurement practices of the department.
48-8-221.
The
phase in of the transfer of a portion of the sales and use tax on motor fuels to
the fund in the Department of Transportation to be designated solely for
transportation purposes, provided for in Article III, Section IX, Paragraph
VI(b)(2) of the Constitution, shall be as follows:
(1)
As of July 1, 2010, 50 percent of the applicable amount collected in the
previous fiscal year shall be transferred to the transportation purposes fund;
and
(2)
As of July 1, 2011, and annually thereafter, 100 percent of the applicable
amount collected in the previous fiscal year shall be transferred to the
transportation purposes fund."
SECTION
2.
Code
Section 48-9-3 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to the motor
fuel tax, is amended by revising subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (10) of
subsection (b) as follows:
"(10)(A)
During the period of July 1,
2006
2008,
through June 30,
2008
2010,
sales of motor fuel, as defined in paragraph (9) of Code Section 48-9-2, for
public mass transit vehicles which are owned by public transportation systems
which receive or are eligible to receive funds pursuant to 49 U.S.C. Sections
5307 and 5311 for which passenger fares are routinely charged and which vehicles
are used exclusively for revenue generating purposes which motor fuel sales
occur at bulk purchase facilities approved by the department.
(B)
During the period of July 1,
2006
2008,
through June 30,
2008
2010,
sales of motor fuel, as defined in paragraph (9) of Code Section 48-9-2, for
vehicles operated by a public campus transportation system, provided that such
system has a policy which provides for free transfer of passengers from the
public transportation system operated by the jurisdiction in which the campus is
located; makes the general public aware of such free transfer policy; and
receives no state or federal funding to assist in the operation of such public
campus transportation system and which motor fuel sales occur at bulk purchase
facilities approved by the department."
SECTION
3.
Section
1 of this Act shall become effective on January 1, 2009; provided, however, that
this Act shall only become effective on January 1, 2009, upon the ratification
of a resolution at the November, 2008, state-wide general election, which
resolution amends the Constitution so as to authorize additional funding sources
for transportation purposes. If such resolution is not so ratified, Section 1
of this Act shall not become effective and shall stand repealed in its entirety
on January 1, 2009. Section 2 of this Act shall become effective on July 1,
2008.
SECTION
4.
All
laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.