07 LC 34
1029
Senate
Bill 181
By:
Senator Carter of the 13th
A
BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
AN ACT
To
amend Article 7 of Chapter 2 of Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia
Annotated, relating to motor vehicle license fees and classes, so as to provide
for the imposition of a fee by motor vehicle rental companies with respect to
certain motor vehicle fees and taxes; to provide for definitions; to provide for
procedures, conditions, and limitations; to provide for applicability of sales
and use taxation with respect to such fees; to provide for related matters; to
provide an effective date; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other
purposes.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION
1.
Article
7 of Chapter 2 of Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating
to motor vehicle license fees and classes, is amended by adding a new Code
section to read as follows:
"40-2-167.
(a)
As used in this Code section, the term:
(1)
'Government facility charges' means the total concession recovery fees actually
incurred or the total consolidated facility fees actually incurred by a motor
vehicle rental company and which are used for improvements to or construction of
facilities where a motor vehicle rental company operates, when such charges are
imposed by an airport or other governmentally owned or operated facility, each
of which shall be shown as separate line items when passed through to rental
customers.
(2)
'Motor vehicle rental company' means an individual or business entity which
owns, rents, or leases five or more rental motor vehicles and which regularly
rents or leases such vehicles to the public for value.
(3)
'Recoverable fees and taxes' means the following tag fees, title fees,
registration fees, and ad valorem taxes imposed in relation to rental motor
vehicles:
(A)
Any amount levied for a certificate of title, application for a certificate of
title, or charges for the processing thereof which are imposed upon a motor
vehicle rental company, in each case pursuant to Code Sections 40-3-20 and
40-3-38;
(B)
Any amount levied for a license tag or revalidation decal, in each case pursuant
to Code Sections 40-2-42, 40-2-151, and 40-2-155;
(C)
Any amount levied as a condition to participation in a fleet registration plan
as defined in Code Section 40-2-50; or
(D)
Any amount levied by this state or a local taxing authority as ad valorem taxes
on rental motor vehicles, including in connection with their registration, in
each case pursuant to Code Sections 48-5-471 and 48-5-473.
(4)
'Rental motor vehicle' means a motor vehicle that is rented or leased without a
driver.
(b)
Pursuant to a written rental agreement between a motor vehicle rental company
and a rental customer, a motor vehicle rental company may separately charge fees
to recover recoverable fees and taxes, and government facility charges, in
connection with the rental motor vehicles in its rental fleet as provided in
this Code section.
(c)
The amount of the fee to recover recoverable fees and taxes shall be based upon
the motor vehicle rental company´s good faith estimate of the average
per-day, per-rental motor vehicle amount of the motor vehicle rental
company´s aggregate recoverable fees and taxes imposed in connection with
rental motor vehicles made available for lease or rental for the corresponding
calendar year.
(d)
No motor vehicle rental company charging such a recovery fee for recoverable
fees and taxes or government facility charges may make any print media or
publicly broadcast advertisement in this state that includes any specific
statement of the rental rate for a rental motor vehicle available for lease or
rent in this state, unless such advertisement also includes a statement that the
customer will pay a recovery fee and which discloses the estimated maximum daily
charge for such recovery of recoverable fees and taxes and which discloses the
existence of any government facility charges.
(e)
The recovery fee for recoverable fees and taxes shall be billed as a separately
identified charge in the rental documentation and must bear the designation
'Vehicle License Fee Recovery' or 'VLFR.' Additionally, the rental agreement
itself must explain that the charge represents:
'the
estimated average per-day, per-vehicle amount of [the motor vehicle rental
company´s] total annual cost for applicable tag, title, and registration
fees, and ad valorem taxes.'
(f)
Any such recovery fees for recoverable fees and taxes collected by the motor
vehicle rental company in excess of the finally determined amount of the motor
vehicle rental company´s actual recoverable fees and taxes for such year
shall be retained by the motor vehicle rental company during such calendar year
and applied toward its recoverable fees and taxes for the next calendar year. In
that event, the amount of the next year´s recovery fee for recoverable fees
and taxes shall be reduced to take into account the excess amount collected in
the prior year.
(g)
The recovery fee authorized by this Code section for recoverable fees and taxes
shall be subject to state and local sales and use tax in the manner and to the
same extent as the fee charged for the lease or rental of the rental motor
vehicle."
SECTION
2.
This
Act shall become effective upon its approval by the Governor or upon its
becoming law without such approval.
SECTION
3.
All
laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.