South Carolina General Assembly
111th Session, 1995-1996

Bill 4833


                    Current Status

Bill Number:                    4833
Ratification Number:            540
Act Number:                     456
Type of Legislation:            General Bill GB
Introducing Body:               House
Introduced Date:                19960327
Primary Sponsor:                Robinson
All Sponsors:                   Robinson, Herdklotz, Waldrop,
                                Fulmer, Trotter, Sandifer, Marchbanks,
                                Rice, Haskins and Harrell 
Drafted Document Number:        jic\5710htc.96
Date Bill Passed both Bodies:   19960613
Date of Last Amendment:         19960612
Governor's Action:              S
Date of Governor's Action:      19960703
Subject:                        Taxation provisions, property and
                                appeals

History



Body    Date      Action Description                       Com     Leg Involved
______  ________  _______________________________________  _______ ____________

------  19960711  Act No. A456
------  19960703  Signed by Governor
------  19960626  Ratified R540
Senate  19960613  Concurred in House amendment, 
                  enrolled for ratification
House   19960612  Senate amendments amended,
                  returned to Senate with amendment
Senate  19960529  Read third time, returned to House
                  with amendment
Senate  19960523  Amended
Senate  19960516  Amended, read second time, 
                  ordered to third reading 
                  with notice of general amendments
Senate  19960509  Recalled from Committee,                 06 SF
                  placed on the Calendar
Senate  19960416  Introduced, read first time,             06 SF
                  referred to Committee
House   19960411  Read third time, sent to Senate
House   19960410  Amended, read second time
House   19960409  Committee report: Favorable with         30 HWM
                  amendment
House   19960327  Introduced, read first time,             30 HWM
                  referred to Committee

View additional legislative information at the LPITS web site.


(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)

(R540, H4833)

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 12-28-795, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO INTEREST DUE ON GASOLINE TAX REFUNDS, SO AS TO CORRECT THE REFERENCE TO THE PROVISIONS ON INTEREST ON TAX OVERPAYMENTS AND UNDERPAYMENTS; TO AMEND SECTION 12-28-2360, RELATING TO REFUNDS OF GASOLINE TAX INSPECTION FEES, SO AS TO EXTEND THE GENERAL LIMITATIONS ON THE ASSESSMENT OF STATE TAXES TO CLAIMS FOR REFUNDS; TO AMEND SECTION 12-43-300, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO APPEALS OF VALUATION FOR PURPOSES OF THE PROPERTY, SO AS TO DELETE REDUNDANT PROVISIONS AND CORRECT A REFERENCE; TO AMEND SECTION 12-54-25, RELATING TO INTEREST ON TAX UNDERPAYMENTS AND OVERPAYMENTS, SO AS TO ALLOW THE DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE AND TAXATION TO INCREASE FROM FIFTEEN TO THIRTY DAYS THE TIME FOR WHICH INTEREST MAY BE WAIVED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE CONVENIENCE; TO AMEND SECTION 12-54-85, RELATING TO LIMITATIONS ON TAX ASSESSMENTS AND COLLECTIONS, SO AS TO PROVIDE THE DATES WHEN CERTAIN TAXES ARE CONSIDERED TO HAVE BEEN PAID OR RETURNS FILED; TO AMEND SECTION 12-60-30, RELATING TO DEFINITIONS FOR PURPOSES OF THE TAX APPEALS, SO AS TO REVISE DEFINITIONS; TO AMEND SECTION 12-60-40, RELATING TO WAIVER OF TIME LIMITATIONS FOR PURPOSES OF TAX APPEALS, SO AS TO ALLOW THE DEPARTMENT TO EXTEND ANY TIME LIMITATIONS; TO AMEND SECTION 12-60-50, RELATING TO THE PROVISIONS APPLICABLE WHEN TIME PERIODS EXPIRE ON WEEKENDS OR LEGAL HOLIDAYS, SO AS TO CLARIFY THAT THESE PROVISIONS APPLY TO ALL TAXES AND TO ADOPT PROVISIONS OF THE INTERNAL REVENUE CODE FOR CERTAIN DETERMINATIONS OF TIME OF FILING AND PAYMENT; TO AMEND SECTION 12-60-410, RELATING TO LIMITATIONS ON ASSESSMENTS FOR A TAX PERIOD FOR WHICH A FINAL ADMINISTRATIVE OR JUDICIAL ORDER HAS BEEN ISSUED, SO AS TO EXEMPT FROM THESE AN ORDER ABATING A JEOPARDY ASSESSMENT OR ASSESSMENT ARISING FROM ADDITIONAL INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE ASSESSMENTS; TO AMEND SECTION 12-60-440, RELATING TO DEFICIENCY ASSESSMENT RESTRICTIONS, SO AS TO PROVIDE ADDITIONAL EXEMPTIONS FROM THESE RESTRICTIONS; TO AMEND SECTION 12-60-2130, RELATING TO PROPERTY TAX ASSESSMENT APPEALS OF PROPERTY VALUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE AND TAXATION, SO AS TO GIVE THE AUTHORITY TO APPEAL A DEPARTMENTAL DETERMINATION TO THE LOCAL GOVERNING BODY; TO AMEND SECTION 12-60-2150, RELATING TO CLAIMS FOR REFUND BASED ON PROPERTY TAX EXEMPTIONS, SO AS TO CHANGE A REFERENCE FROM PROTEST TO CLAIM FOR REFUND; TO REPEAL SECTIONS 12-4-760, 12-47-75, AND 12-54-60, RELATING RESPECTIVELY TO APPEALS TO THE TAX BOARD OF REVIEW, THE PROPER CREDITING OF TAXES ERRONEOUSLY CREDITED, AND AUTHORITY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE AND TAXATION TO ESTIMATE TAXES DUE WHEN A REQUIRED REPORT OR RETURN IS NOT FILED; TO AMEND SECTION 12-37-220, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO PROPERTY TAX EXEMPTIONS, SO AS TO INCREASE THE MAXIMUM ACREAGE ON WHICH EXEMPTIONS MAY BE CLAIMED FOR PROPERTY ACQUIRED FOR NONPROFIT RESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION FOR RESALE TO ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED PERSONS; AND TO AMEND SECTION 12-28-710, RELATING TO GASOLINE TAX EXEMPTIONS, SO AS TO EXEMPT GASOLINE USED IN AIRCRAFT.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

Interest rate

SECTION 1. Section 12-28-795 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 136 of 1995, is amended to read:

"Section 12-28-795. Interest on a claim for refund must be paid at the rate and in the manner provided in Section 12-54-25."

Inspection fee

SECTION 2. Section 12-28-2360 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 136 of 1995, is amended to read:

"Section 12-28-2360. A person may present to the department proof that he has paid an inspection fee on petroleum products in error or has paid an inspection fee on shipments of petroleum products subsequently diverted from the State, whereupon the department shall refund the amount of the inspection fee to the payee out of the petroleum products inspection fund, if the proof of the claim is submitted within the time provided in Section 12-54-85."

Appeals

SECTION 3. Section 12-43-300 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 181 of 1993, is further amended to read:

"Section 12-43-300. The governing body of the county may by ordinance extend the time for filing an objection to the valuation and assessment of real property resulting from reassessment within a county.

The Department of Revenue and Taxation shall prescribe a standard reassessment form designed to contain the information required in Section 12-60-2510(A)(1) in a manner that may be understood easily."

Interest waiver

SECTION 4. Section 12-54-25(A) of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 60 of 1995, is amended to read:

"(A) If any tax is not paid when due, interest is due on the unpaid portion from the time the tax was due until paid in its entirety. For administrative convenience, the department may waive up to thirty days' interest."

Statute of limitations

SECTION 5. Section 12-54-85(F) of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 60 of 1995, is amended by adding at the end:

"(6) For the purposes of this subsection:

(a) Any return filed before the last day prescribed for the filing is considered as filed on the last day. Payment of any portion of the tax made before the last day prescribed for the payment of the tax is considered made on the last day. The last day prescribed for filing the return or paying the tax must be determined without regard to any extension of time.

(b) Any tax actually withheld at the source in respect of the recipient of income, is considered to have been paid by the recipient on the last day prescribed for filing his return for the taxable year, determined without regard to any extension of time for filing the return, with respect to which the taxpayer would be allowed a credit for the amount withheld.

(c) Any amount paid as estimated income tax for any taxable year is considered to have been paid on the last day prescribed for filing the return for the taxable year, determined without regard to any extension of time for filing the return."

Definitions

SECTION 6. Items (26) and (27) of Section 12-60-30 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 60 of 1995, are amended respectively to read:

"(26) `State tax' means all taxes, licenses, permits, fees, or other amounts, including interest and penalties, imposed by this title, or assessed or collected by the department, including property subject to collection pursuant to Chapter 18 of Title 27, except property taxes.

(27) `Tax' or `taxes' means all taxes, licenses, permits, fees, or other amounts, including interest and penalties, imposed by this title, or subject to assessment or collection by the department, including property subject to collection pursuant to Chapter 18 of Title 27."

Waivers

SECTION 7. Section 12-60-40 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 60 of 1995, is amended to read:

"Section 12-60-40. (A) A taxpayer may waive his rights under this chapter, providing the waiver is in writing and is signed by the taxpayer or his representative. The department may extend any time limitations provided by this title and for any other taxes. The department and a taxpayer may agree to extend any time limitations or waive any requirements provided in Article 5 or Article 9 of this chapter.

(B) Time limitations provided under this chapter and Chapter 54 are suspended during a stay ordered by the Taxpayers' Rights Advocate."

Timely filing and payment

SECTION 8. Section 12-60-50 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 60 of 1995, is amended to read:

"Section 12-60-50. (A) For purposes of this title and for any other taxes, when the last day of any specified time period is a Saturday, Sunday, or a legal holiday, the end of the period is extended to the next business day. For this purpose, a legal holiday is any day the department or the offices of the United States Postal Service are closed and for subarticles 9 and 13 of Article 9 any day the county office is closed.

(B) Except where payment of taxes is required to be made in funds which are immediately available to the State by electronic funds transfer or otherwise, the provisions of Internal Revenue Code Section 7502 relating to timely mailing as timely filing and paying are applicable to returns, other documents, or payment of taxes imposed by this title, or subject to assessment and collection by the department."

Assessments

SECTION 9. Section 12-60-410 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 60 of 1995, is amended to read:

"Section 12-60-410. The department shall assess all state taxes, including interest, additions to taxes, and penalties. An assessment is made by an employee of the department recording the liability of the taxpayer in the office of the department in accordance with rules or procedures prescribed by the department. Upon request of the taxpayer, the department shall furnish a copy of the assessment. The department may, at any time within the time period for assessment, make a supplemental assessment when it is determined that an assessment is imperfect or incomplete. Except in the case of fraud, an order abating a jeopardy assessment, or additional assessments resulting from adjustments made by the Internal Revenue Service, the department may not assess taxes imposed by the same article, or chapter if the chapter has no article, for any tax period for which a final order has been issued by the Administrative Law Judge Division or a court determining the taxpayer's liability for that tax period."

Assessment restrictions

SECTION 10. Section 12-60-440 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 60 of 1995, is amended to read:

"Section 12-60-440. The department may not assess a deficiency until thirty days after sending the proposed assessment as provided in Section 12-60-420, or, if the taxpayer files a timely written protest with the department, until the taxpayer's appeal is finally decided. For purposes of this section, the final decision of an appeal includes the decision of the Administrative Law Judge Division, DMV hearing officers, or court, if the matter was heard by the Administrative Law Judge Division or DMV hearing officers, or appealed to a court as provided in this article. This restriction on assessments does not apply to:

(1) mathematical or clerical errors;

(2) interest imposed by this title or subject to assessment or collection by the department;

(3) penalties for failure to file or failure to pay, or penalties that are determined as a percentage of interest;

(4) amounts reported on a return or other document, or paid as tax; or

(5) assessments as provided in Section 12-60-910.

If a proposed assessment was not issued, the taxpayer may request an abatement of any assessment due to a mathematical or clerical error, or for a penalty described in item (3), within thirty days of the date of the assessment. Upon receipt of the request for abatement the department shall abate the assessment. Any further assessment of the tax with respect to which an abatement is made under this paragraph is subject to the proposed assessment procedures described in this chapter. No levy or collection proceeding may begin for a mathematical or clerical error during the thirty-day period during which a taxpayer may request an abatement."

Appeals

SECTION 11. The first paragraph of Section 12-60-2130 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 60 of 1995, is amended to read:

"A property taxpayer or the local governing body who disagrees with the department determination may request a contested case hearing before the Administrative Law Judge Division if he files an action within thirty days of the date of the department's determination. Requests for a hearing before the Administrative Law Judge Division must be made in accordance with its rules. If a taxpayer requests a contested case hearing before the Administrative Law Judge Division without exhausting his prehearing remedy because he failed to file a protest, the Administrative Law Judge shall dismiss the action without prejudice. If the taxpayer failed to provide the department with the facts, law, and other authority supporting his position, he shall provide the department with the facts, law, and other authority he failed to present to the department earlier. The Administrative Law Judge shall then remand the case to the department for reconsideration in light of the new facts or issues unless the department elects to forego the remand."

Refund claims

SECTION 12. Section 12-60-2150(C) of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 60 of 1995, is amended to read:

"(C) The claim for refund under this section must be mailed or delivered to the department, and must include the information required in Section 12-60-450(B), the fair market value, special use value, if applicable, and property classification of the property the taxpayer believes correct. If the claim for refund states the property is exempt, the claim for refund must state the basis on which exemption is claimed."

Repeals

SECTION 13. Sections 12-4-760, 12-47-75, and 12-54-60 of the 1976 Code are repealed.

Exemption

SECTION 14. Section 12-37-220(B)(16)(b) of the 1976 Code is amended to read:

"(b) The property of any religious, charitable, or eleemosynary society, corporation, or other association when the property is acquired for the purpose of building or renovating residential structures on it for not-for-profit sale to economically disadvantaged persons, but this exemption may not be claimed for more than five tax years on a single property. Further, the total properties for which the religious, charitable, or eleemosynary society, corporation, or other association may claim this exemption in accordance with this paragraph may not exceed fifty acres per county within the State."

Exemption

SECTION 15. Section 12-28-710 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 136 of 1995, is amended by adding an appropriately numbered item at the end to read:

"( ) gasoline used in aircraft."

Time effective

SECTION 16. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.

In the Senate House June 26, 1996.

Robert L. Peeler,

President of the Senate

David H. Wilkins,

Speaker of the House of

Representatives

Approved the 3rd day of July, 1996.

David M. Beasley,

Governor

Printer's Date -- July 9, 1996 -- S.

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