Current Status Bill Number:510 Ratification Number:198 Act Number:125 Type of Legislation:General Bill GB Introducing Body:Senate Introduced Date:19970311 Primary Sponsor:Leatherman All Sponsors:Leatherman Drafted Document Number:kgh\5818htc.97 Date Bill Passed both Bodies:19970603 Date of Last Amendment:19970603 Governor's Action:S Date of Governor's Action:19970613 Subject:Motor vehicle carriers, property tax valuation functions transferred to Revenue; registration and licensing fees
Body Date Action Description Com Leg Involved
______ ________ _______________________________________ _______ ____________
------ 19970630 Act No. A125
------ 19970613 Signed by Governor
------ 19970609 Ratified R198
House 19970603 Concurred in Senate amendment,
enrolled for ratification
Senate 19970603 House amendments amended,
returned to House with amendment
House 19970529 Read third time, returned to Senate
with amendment
House 19970529 Debate adjourned
House 19970528 Amended, read second time
House 19970522 Committee report: Favorable with 21 HEPW
amendment
House 19970501 Introduced, read first time, 21 HEPW
referred to Committee
Senate 19970430 Amended, read third time,
sent to House
Senate 19970403 Read second time, notice of
general amendments
Senate 19970402 Polled out of Committee: Favorable 15 ST
Senate 19970311 Introduced, read first time, 15 ST
referred to Committee
View additional legislative information at the LPITS web site.
Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter
HOUSE AMENDMENTS AMENDED
June 3, 1997
S. 510
S. Printed 6/3/97--S.
Read the first time March 11, 1997.
TO AMEND SECTION 56-3-1290, AS AMENDED, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO THE TRANSFER OF LICENSE PLATES FROM ONE MOTOR VEHICLE TO ANOTHER MOTOR VEHICLE OF THE SAME VEHICLE OWNER OR LESSEE, SO AS TO ALLOW THE TRANSFER OF THE PLATE ONLY WHEN THE OWNER OR LESSEE HAS ASSIGNED TO ANOTHER THE TITLE TO OR LEASE ON THE VEHICLE FROM WHICH THE PLATE IS TRANSFERRED.
Amend Title To Conform
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. A. Article 23, Chapter 37, Title 12 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
Section 12-37-2845. If a motor carrier which is required to file a property tax return but is not required to register motor vehicles in this State fails to file a return and remit property taxes, the Department of Revenue shall issue a demand for payment. If the motor carrier fails to file a return and remit taxes within thirty days of receipt of the notice, the department shall issue a warrant for the estimated amount of tax due, plus a twenty-five percent penalty, to be collected in the same manner as other warrants are collected.
B. Section 12-37-2820 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 461 of 1996, is amended to read:
"Section 12-37-2820. The Department of Public Safety Revenue annually shall assess, equalize, and apportion the valuation of all motor vehicles of motor carriers. The valuation must be based on fair market value for the motor vehicles and an assessment ratio of nine and one-half percent as provided by Section 12-43-220(g). Fair market value is determined by depreciating the gross capitalized cost of each motor vehicle by an annual percentage depreciation allowance down to ten percent of the cost as follows:
(1) Year One - .90
(2) Year Two - .80
(3) Year Three - .65
(4) Year Four - .50
(5) Year Five - .35
(6) Year Six - .25
(7) Year Seven - .20
(8) Year Eight - .15
(9) Year Nine - .10 "
C. Section 12-37-2830 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 461 of 1996, is amended to read:
"Section 12-37-2830. The value of a motor carrier's vehicles subject to property taxes in this State must be determined by the Department of Public Safety Revenue based on the ratio of total mileage operated within this State during the preceding calendar year to the total mileage of its entire fleet operated within and without this State during the same preceding calendar year."
D. Section 12-37-2840 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 461 of 1996, is amended to read:
"Section 12-37-2840. Motor carriers must file an annual property tax return with the Department of Public Safety Revenue no later than the thirtieth day of June for the preceding calendar year with and remit one-half or the entire tax due as stated on the return. If one-half of the tax is remitted on or before June 30 the remaining one-half of the tax due must be paid to the Department of Revenue on or before December 31. If the motor carrier fails to remit tax due pursuant to this section, the department shall issue a notice to the motor carrier demanding payment for the entire amount shown to be due. If the motor carrier fails to remit the tax due within thirty days of receipt of the notice, the Department of Revenue shall notify the Department of Public Safety, which must not renew the registrations of the motor vehicles required by this article to be on the property tax return. A twenty-five percent penalty must be added to the property tax due and the tax and penalty must be paid in full by cashier's check, money order, or cash. The penalty required by this section is instead of all other penalties and interest required by law.
Upon payment in full, the Department of Revenue shall notify the Department of Public Safety which then shall allow for registrations of the motor vehicles."
E. Section 12-37-2850 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 461 of 1996, is amended to read:
"Section 12-37-2850. The Department of Public Safety Revenue shall assess annually the taxes due based on the value determined in Section 12-28-2820 and an average millage for all purposes statewide for the current year. The average millage may be increased to cover any loss of revenue from not licensing trailers incurred by the Department of Public Safety Revenue from not licensing trailers. The taxes assessed must be paid to the Department of Public Safety Revenue no later than December thirty-first of each year and may be made in two equal installments. Distribution of the taxes paid must be made by the State Treasurer's Office based on the distribution formula contained in Section 12-37-2870."
F. Section 12-37-2860 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 461 of 1996, is amended to read:
"Section 12-37-2860. In lieu Instead of the property taxes and registration requirements after the initial registration contained in Sections 56-3-110 and 56-3-700 on semitrailers and trailers of motor carriers as defined in Section 12-37-2810, a one-time fee payable to the Department of Public Safety in the amount of eighty-seven dollars is due on all semitrailers and trailers currently registered and subsequently on each semitrailer and trailer before being placed in service. Twelve dollars of the one-time fee must be distributed to the Department of Public Safety Revenue. The Department of Public Safety shall design a permanent tag for display on the exterior of the rear of the trailer or semitrailer in a conspicuous place. The remaining seventy-five dollars of the fee must be distributed based on the distribution formula contained in Section 12-37-2870. The distribution of fees collected pursuant to this section by the Department of Public Safety must occur by the fifteenth day of the month following the month in which the fees are collected. The fee required by this section is due on or before March 31, 1998, for the initial registration. "
G. Section 12-37-2870 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 461 of 1996, is amended to read:
"Section 12-37-2870. The distribution for each county must be determined on the ratio of total federal and state highway miles within each county during the preceding calendar year to the total federal and state highway miles within all counties of this State during the same preceding calendar year. The county must distribute the revenue from the payment-in-lieu of taxes received pursuant to this section within thirty days of its receipt to every governmental entity levying a property tax in the manner set forth below. For each governmental entity levying a property tax, the entire assessed value of the taxable property within its boundaries and the county area must be multiplied by the millage rate imposed by the governmental entity. That figure constitutes the numerator for that governmental entity. The total of the numerators for all property tax levying entities within the county area constitutes the denominator. The numerator for each governmental entity must be divided by the denominator. The resulting percentage must be multiplied by the payment-in-lieu of tax revenue received pursuant to this section and that amount distributed to the general fund of the appropriate governmental entity. The distribution of taxes and fees paid must be made by the last day of the next month succeeding the month in which the taxes and fees were paid."
H. Section 12-37-2880 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 461 of 1996, is amended to read:
"Section 12-37-2880. Motor vehicles, as defined in Section 12-37-2810, owned, operated, managed, or leased by a motor carrier are exempt from property tax except as provided in this article. The ad valorem taxes authorized by this article are in lieu of all other ad valorem taxes upon the motor vehicles of motor carriers. The fee in lieu of property taxes and registration requirements authorized by this article are in lieu of all other ad valorem taxes upon trailers and semitrailers of motor carriers."
I. Section 56-3-120 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 425 of 1996, is further amended by adding at the end to read:
"(5) a trailer or semitrailer of a motor carrier as defined in Section 12-37-2810 for which the fee in lieu of taxes and registration requirements has been paid and a distinctive permanent plate has been issued pursuant to Section 12-37-2860."
J. Section 56-3-700 of the 1976 Code, as amended by Act 164 of 1993, is further amended to read:
"Section 56-3-700. For every trailer, semitrailer, or pole trailer, not exempted by Section 56-3-120(5), the biennial registration fee is twenty dollars. The department must include in this classification every trailer, semitrailer, or pole trailer designed for carrying property, except house trailers, utility trailers, those trailers and semitrailers exempted by Section 56-3-120(5), and boat trailers as otherwise provided in this article. Semitrailers or pole trailers weighing less than five hundred pounds with load capacity of less than one thousand pounds and trailers and semitrailers with an actual unloaded weight of fifteen hundred pounds or less and carrying a load capacity not exceeding twenty-five hundred pounds and which are designed, adapted, and used exclusively for agriculture, horticulture, or livestock-raising operations or for lifting or carrying an implement of husbandry need not be registered or licensed."
K. SECTIONS 2 and 3 of Act 461 of 1996 are amended to read:
"SECTION 2. For the taxes assessed and required to be paid in accordance with this act, under Section 12-37-2850 of the 1976 Code, credit shall be allowed for any motor carrier's vehicle property taxes previously paid by a motor carrier for the 1998 tax year. Motor vehicles as defined in Article 23, Chapter 37, Title 12 of the 1976 Code which are acquired after May 31, 1997, are not subject to fiscal year 1998 property taxes. For purposes of this section, fiscal year 1998 is April 1, 1997, through March 31, 1998.
SECTION 3. The first annual property tax return required under this act, required to must be filed by Section 12-37-2840 of the 1976 Code, is due June 30, 1998, for the 1997 calendar year."
L. Except where otherwise provided in this section, this section has the same effective date provided for Article 23, Chapter 37, Title 12 of the 1976 Code as added by Act 461 of 1996.
SECTION 3. Except where otherwise stated, this act takes effect on the first day of the third month following approval by the Governor.