H 5088 Session 110 (1993-1994)
H 5088 General Bill, By McCraw, Littlejohn and Phillips
Similar(S 1362)
A Bill to amend Chapter 71, Title 59, Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1976,
relating to school bonds, by adding Article 2, so as to enact the School
Bond-Property Tax Relief Act.
04/14/94 House Introduced and read first time HJ-12
04/14/94 House Referred to Committee on Ways and Means HJ-12
A BILL
TO AMEND CHAPTER 71, TITLE 59, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH
CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO SCHOOL BONDS, BY ADDING
ARTICLE 2 SO AS TO ENACT THE SCHOOL BOND-PROPERTY
TAX RELIEF ACT.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Title 59, Chapter 71, is amended by adding:
"Article 2
The School Bond-Property Tax Relief Act
Section 59-71-210. This article may be cited as the School
Bond-Property Tax Relief Act.
Section 59-71-220. Subject to the requirements of this article, the
governing body of a school district may by resolution impose a one
percent sales and use tax within its jurisdiction for a specific purpose
and for a specified period of time to collect funds to be used to pay debt
service on general obligation bonds issued pursuant to Article 1 of this
chapter (School Bond Act).
Section 59-71-230. (A)(1) The governing body of a school district
may vote to impose the tax authorized by this article, subject to a
referendum, by enacting a resolution. The resolution must specify:
(a) the improvements to be financed through the issuance of
general obligation bonds of the school district together with the
imposition of the tax;
(b) the maximum time, stated in calendar years or calendar
quarters, or a combination of them, not to exceed twenty years, for
which the tax may be imposed; and
(c) the maximum principal amount of general obligation bonds
to be issued and repaid with proceeds of the tax.
(2) The findings provided in item (1) may be incorporated within
a resolution of the governing body of the school district calling for a
referendum upon the question of the issuance of general obligation
bonds pursuant to Article 1 of this chapter if the proposed tax will be
applied to payment of debt service upon the bonds.
(B) Upon receipt of the resolution, the election commission or
commissions for the county or counties in which the school district is
located shall conduct a referendum on the question of imposing the
optional special sales and use tax in the school district. Notice of the
election must be provided in the manner provided by the general election
law and include the question to be voted upon in the referendum. In
addition, if the question of the issuance of general obligation bonds is to
also be voted upon in the referendum, publication of notice of the
referendum must also be given in compliance with Article 1 of this
chapter. Expenses of the referendum must be paid by the jurisdiction
conducting the referendum.
(C) The question to be voted upon in the referendum shall read
substantially as follows:
`Must a special one percent sales and use tax be imposed in
(name of school district) for not more than (number of years)
in order to raise funds which will be applied to pay debt service on
general obligation bonds issued to defray the cost of (identify
improvements)?'
Yes []
No []
The ballot may, in the discretion of the governing body of the school
district, contain a short explanation of the question to be voted upon in
this referendum.
(D) All qualified electors desiring to vote in favor of imposing the
tax for a particular purpose shall vote `yes' and all qualified electors
opposed to levying the tax for the particular purpose shall vote `no'.
Upon receipt of the returns of the referendum, the election commission
shall, by resolution, declare the results of it and shall file the resolution
with the clerk of court for the county or counties in which the school
district is located. The resolution shall also be filed with the South
Carolina Department of Revenue and Taxation. The results of the
referendum, as declared by resolution of the election commission or
commission and as filed with said Clerk of Court, is not open to question
except by a civil action instituted within twenty days of the filing of it.
If a majority of the votes cast are in favor of imposing the tax, then the
tax is imposed as provided in this article; otherwise the tax is not
imposed. A referendum on imposition of the tax authorized in this
article may not be held more than once in a period of twelve consecutive
months.
Section 59-71-240. (A) If the tax is approved in the referendum, the
tax must be imposed beginning upon the first day of the third full month
following the filing of the declaration of results of the referendum with
the Department of Revenue and Taxation.
(B) The tax terminates:
(1) on the final day of the maximum time specified for the
imposition; or
(2) if earlier, but not if later, upon payment of the final maturing
installments of principal of the bonds to which application of the tax is
authorized, or upon payment of the final maturing installments of
principal of general obligation bonds issued to refund the bonds.
(C) When the optional sales and use tax is imposed for more than
one purpose, the governing body of the school district authorizing the
referendum for the tax shall determine the priority for the expenditure
of the net proceeds of the tax for the purposes stated in the referendum.
Section 59-71-250. (A) The tax levied pursuant to this article must
be administered and collected by the Department of Revenue and
Taxation in the same manner that other sales and use taxes are collected.
The department may prescribe the amounts which may be added to the
sales price because of the tax.
(B) The tax authorized by this article is in addition to all other local
sales and use taxes and applies to the gross proceeds of the sales in the
applicable jurisdiction which are subject to the tax imposed by Chapter
36 of Title 12 and the enforcement provisions of Chapter 54 of Title 12.
The gross proceeds of the sale of items subject to a maximum tax in
Chapter 36 of Title 12 are exempt from the tax imposed by this article.
The gross proceeds of the sale of food which may lawfully be purchased
with United States Department of Agriculture food stamps are exempt
from the tax imposed by this article. The tax imposed by this article also
applies to tangible personal property subject to the use tax in Article 13,
Chapter 36, of Title 12.
(C) Taxpayers required to remit taxes under Article 13, Chapter 36
of Title 12 shall identify the school district in which the tangible
personal property purchased at retail is stored, used or consumed in this
State.
(D) Utilities are required to report sales in the school district in
which consumption of the tangible personal property occurs.
(E) A taxpayer subject to the tax imposed by Section 12-36-920,
who owns or manages rental units in more than one school district shall
separately report in his sales tax return the total gross proceeds from
business done in each school district.
(F) The gross proceeds of sales of tangible personal property
delivered after the imposition date of the tax levied under this article in
a school district, either under the terms of a construction contract
executed before the imposition date, or a written bid submitted before
the imposition date, culminating in a construction contract entered into
before or after the imposition date, are exempt from the special local
sales and use tax provided in this section if a verified copy of the
contract is filed with the Department of Revenue and Taxation within six
months after the imposition of the special local sales and use tax.
(G) Notwithstanding the imposition date of the special local sales
and use tax authorized pursuant to this article, with respect to services
that are regularly billed on a monthly basis, the special local sales and
use tax is imposed beginning on the first day of the billing period
beginning on or after the imposition date.
Section 59-71-260. (A) The revenues of the tax collected in each
school district under this article must be remitted to the State Treasurer
and credited to a fund separate and distinct from the general fund of the
State. After deducting the amount of refunds made and costs to the
Department of Revenue and Taxation of administering the tax, not to
exceed one percent of the revenues, the State Treasurer shall distribute
the revenues quarterly to the county treasurer who holds the debt service
funds established for payment of principal and interest on the bonds to
which the tax is applicable. The State Treasurer may correct
misallocation costs or refunds by adjusting subsequent distributions, but
these adjustments must be made in the same fiscal year as the
misallocation.
(B) A county treasurer holding taxes collected pursuant to this article
must certify to the auditor of the county on July fifteenth of each
calendar year as to the amount of taxes held by that county treasurer as
of June thirtieth of the calendar year. The county auditor shall reduce
the next levy of ad valorem property taxes required to pay debt service
on bonds to which the tax is applicable by the amount of tax revenues
certified as collected as of June thirtieth by the county treasurer. Taxes
collected as of June thirtieth of a calendar year in excess of the amounts
required to pay debt service due in the eighteen months following the
June thirtieth on bonds to which the tax is applicable must be applied to
reduce the next levy of ad valorem property taxes required for payment
of operational and maintenance expenses of the school district.
Section 59-71-270. The Department of Revenue and Taxation shall
furnish data to the State Treasurer and to the school districts receiving
tax revenues pursuant to this article for the purpose of calculating
distributions and estimating revenues. The information which must be
supplied to school districts upon request includes, but is not limited to,
gross receipts, net taxable sales, and tax liability by taxpayers.
Information about a specific taxpayer is considered confidential and is
governed by the provisions of Section 12-54-240. A person violating
this section is subject to the penalties provided in Section
12-54-240."
SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
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