Bill Text: GA SB332 | 2011-2012 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: County Sales/Use Tax; expand the matters included in annual reporting of the expenditure of certain special purpose local option sales tax proceeds

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 6-0)

Status: (Passed) 2012-07-01 - Effective Date [SB332 Detail]

Download: Georgia-2011-SB332-Introduced.html

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12 SB332/AP

Senate Bill 332

By: Senators Ligon, Jr. of the 3rd, McKoon of the 29th, Loudermilk of the 52nd, Albers of the 56th, Hill of the 32nd and others

AS PASSED

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT

To amend Part 2 of Article 1 of Chapter 8 of Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to imposition, rate, collection, and assessment of sales and use taxes, so as to provide that retailers may under certain circumstances advertise that the retailer will pay the purchaser's sales and use tax on a transaction; to amend Article 3 of Chapter 8 of Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to county sales and use tax, so as to expand the matters which are included in annual reporting of the expenditure of certain special purpose local option sales tax proceeds; to provide for enforcement actions by the Attorney General; to amend Article 6 of Chapter 13 of Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, as enacted by Section 5-4 of HB 386 in the 2012 regular session of the General Assembly, relating to a local excise tax on energy used in manufacturing, to provide for certain procedures to be used to implement a local excise tax on energy; to provide for effective dates; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:

SECTION 1.

Part 2 of Article 1 of Chapter 8 of Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to imposition, rate, collection, and assessment of sales and use taxes, is amended by revising Code Section 48-8-36, relating to prohibition of advertising by dealer of his or her assumption of payment of tax, as follows:

"48-8-36.

No person engaged in making retail sales shall advertise or represent to the public in any manner directly or indirectly that he or she will absorb all or any part of the tax or that he or she will relieve the purchaser of the payment of all or any part of the tax imposed by this article unless:

(1) The retailer includes in the advertisement that any portion of the tax not paid by the purchaser will be remitted on behalf of the purchaser by the retailer; and

(2) The retailer furnishes the purchaser with written evidence that the retailer will be liable for and pay any tax the purchaser was relieved from paying under this Code section.

If a retailer advertises that any portion of the tax not paid by the purchaser will be remitted on the purchaser's behalf by the retailer, the retailer shall be solely liable for and shall pay that portion of the tax. If a dealer or retailer complies with the provisions of this Code section and pays the absorbed tax over to the commissioner as provided by law, the dealer or retailer shall be deemed to have complied with the provisions of this article requiring collection of the tax from the purchaser or consumer."

SECTION 2.

Article 3 of Chapter 8 of Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to county sales and use tax, is amended by revising Code Section 48-8-122, relating to record of projects on which tax proceeds are used and annual reporting and newspaper publication of report, as follows:

"48-8-122.

The governing authority of the county and the governing authority of each municipality receiving any proceeds from the tax under this part or under Article 4 of this chapter shall maintain a record of each and every project for which the proceeds of the tax are used. Not later than December 31 of each year, the governing authority of each local government receiving any proceeds from the tax under this part shall publish annually, in a newspaper of general circulation in the boundaries of such local government and in a prominent location on the local government website, if such local government maintains a website, a simple, nontechnical report which shows for each project or purpose in the resolution or ordinance calling for imposition of the tax the original estimated cost, the current estimated cost if it is not the original estimated cost, amounts expended in prior years, and amounts expended in the current year, any excess proceeds which have not been expended for a project or purpose, estimated completion date, and the actual completion cost of a project completed during the current year. In the case of road, street, and bridge purposes, such information shall be in the form of a consolidated schedule of the total original estimated cost, the total current estimated cost if it is not the original estimated cost, and the total amounts expended in prior years and the current year for all such projects and not a separate enumeration of such information with respect to each such individual road, street, or bridge project. The report shall also include a statement of what corrective action the local government intends to implement with respect to each project which is underfunded or behind schedule and a statement of any surplus funds which have not been expended for a project or purpose."

SECTION 3.

Said article is further amended by adding a new Code section to read as follows:

"48-8-124.

The superior courts of this state shall have jurisdiction to enforce compliance with the provisions of this part, including the power to grant injunctions or other equitable relief. In addition to any action that may be brought by any person or entity, the Attorney General shall have authority to bring enforcement actions, either civil or criminal, in his or her discretion as may be appropriate to enforce compliance with this part."

SECTION 4.
Article 6 of Chapter 13 of Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, as enacted by Section 5-4 of HB 386 in the 2012 regular session of the General Assembly, relating to a local excise tax on energy used in manufacturing, is amended by revising Code Section 48-13-115, relating to the implementation of the excise tax, as follows:

"48-13-115.

(a)(1) Within 30 days following the meeting required under Code Section 48-13-113, if the governing authority of the county within the special district fails or refuses to enter into an intergovernmental agreement with the governing authority of each municipality wishing to participate in such excise tax, then the governing authority of each municipality wishing to levy the excise tax shall be authorized to adopt an ordinance levying the excise tax within the corporate limits of such municipality. If a county elects not to participate in such excise tax by not signing such agreement, then the county shall not receive any proceeds from the excise tax. The proceeds of such excise tax shall be deposited in the general fund of each municipality.

(2) If, subsequent to the levy of an excise tax by a municipality under paragraph (1) of this subsection, a county determines to commence proceedings for the imposition of the excise tax under this article, then proceedings for such imposition shall commence in the same manner as otherwise provided under Code Section 48-13-113. Except as to a municipality that levies a water and sewer projects and costs tax pursuant to Article 4 of Chapter 8 of this title, if a county complies with the requirements of this article and enacts an ordinance imposing the excise tax, the excise tax levied by such municipality shall cease on the day immediately prior to the day the new tax levied by the county commences. If such municipality elects not to participate, its current excise tax under this article shall terminate on the date the county's tax levy becomes effective, and it shall not receive any proceeds under the county levy.

(b)(1) If a municipality located within a special district where the excise tax is imposed by the county is not participating in such excise tax and is not receiving proceeds of that excise tax, the governing authority of that nonparticipating municipality may give written notice to the governing authority of the county and the governing authority of each participating municipality within the special district of its decision to opt in to the existing intergovernmental agreement. Within 60 days of the date of such notice, an amended intergovernmental agreement shall be executed by the governing authority of the municipality exercising such opt in and the governing authorities of the county and each currently participating municipality.

(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (1) of subsection (a) of Code Section 48-13-116, when an amended intergovernmental agreement is executed pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subsection, the revised distribution of proceeds thereunder shall not become effective until the first day of the first month which is at least 12 months after the execution of such amended intergovernmental agreement. The distribution of proceeds of the excise tax shall continue under the prior intergovernmental agreement until the date provided for in this paragraph.

(c) Any county that desires to have an excise tax under this article levied county wide within the special district commencing January 1, 2013, shall deliver the written notice pursuant to Code Section 48-13-113 no later than September 1, 2012."

SECTION 5.

Said article is further amended by revising Code Section 48-13-116, as enacted by Section 5-4 of HB 386 in the 2012 regular session of the General Assembly, relating to procedures and limitations on the local excise tax on energy, as follows:

"48-13-116.

(a)(1) Except as otherwise provided in Code Section 48-13-115, an excise tax imposed under this article shall become effective on the first day of the next succeeding month following adoption of the ordinance unless otherwise specified in the intergovernmental agreement required by subsection (a) of Code Section 48-13-114, except that no such tax shall be imposed prior to January 1, 2013.

(2) If services are regularly billed on a monthly basis, however, the excise tax shall become effective with respect to and the tax shall apply to services billed on or after the effective date specified in paragraph (1) of this subsection.

(b) The excise tax shall cease to be imposed on the first day of the next succeeding calendar quarter which begins more than 80 days after the adoption date of an ordinance terminating the excise tax.

(c) At no time shall more than a single 2 percent excise tax under this article be imposed within a special district or a municipality, except that in the event a municipality levies a water and sewer projects and costs tax pursuant to Article 4 of Chapter 8 of this title, a single 3 percent excise tax may be imposed within such municipality.

(d) Following the termination of an excise tax under this article, the governing authority of a county within a special district or the mayor or chief elected official of a municipality in the special district in which an excise tax authorized by this article is in effect may initiate proceedings for the reimposition of a tax under this article in the same manner as provided in this article for the initial imposition of such tax."

SECTION 6.

(a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, this Act shall become effective on July 1, 2012.
(b) Sections 4 and 5 of this Act shall become effective on January 1, 2013.

SECTION 7.

All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.