Revision: March 27, 2015, midnight
HB 639-FN-LOCAL - AS INTRODUCED
2015 SESSION
15-0437
10/04
HOUSE BILL 639-FN-LOCAL
AN ACT repealing the resident tax, relative to tax collection under RSA 80, and establishing a legislative commission to revise RSA 80 governing the collection and enforcement of taxes.
SPONSORS: Rep. Ulery, Hills 37
COMMITTEE: Municipal and County Government
This bill repeals the resident tax and removes requirements for proof of payment of resident taxes. The bill adds a definition of tax collector and repeals certain fees authorized to be assessed by tax collectors under RSA 80. The bill also establishes a legislative commission to revise RSA 80 governing the collection and enforcement of taxes.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
15-0437
10/04
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Fifteen
AN ACT repealing the resident tax, relative to tax collection under RSA 80, and establishing a legislative commission to revise RSA 80 governing the collection and enforcement of taxes.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Property Taxation; Tax Paid Elsewhere. Amend RSA 73:24 to read as follows:
73:24 Tax Paid Elsewhere. If the person [so] assessed and examined under RSA 73:23 shall, on or before January 1 following, produce to the selectmen the certificate, under oath, of the selectmen of any other town that he or she was assessed in that town as an inhabitant, and how much, and has paid the tax, and that the same is the legal tax for the year upon [his resident tax and] the person’s whole estate, the [first mentioned] tax [may] wrongfully assessed shall be abated; otherwise it shall be collected.
2 Property Taxes; Notice to Taxpayers; Resident Taxes Deleted. Amend RSA 76:11, I to read as follows:
I. Such list shall be delivered to the collector within 30 days from the receipt of information by the selectmen from the commissioner of revenue administration of the rate percent of taxation as provided in RSA 41:15, unless for good cause the time is extended by the commissioner of revenue administration. The collector shall, within 30 days after the receipt of such list, send to every person taxed, a bill for such taxes by first class mail or, with the approval of the governing body, by electronic means as provided in paragraph II, unless for good cause the time is extended by the commissioner of revenue administration. Said bill shall be mailed separately and not included with mailing of other town or city bills, unless the governing body of the town or city votes to mail other town or city bills or information directly related to municipal business along with the tax bill. Under no circumstances shall a city or town mail statements of position on matters of public policy along with the tax bill. Upon written request of a mortgagee or its representative, the tax collector of a city or town shall mail or transfer by electronic means as provided in paragraph II a duplicate copy of the property tax bill, as it was sent to the property taxpayer, to the party making such request. Other form of notification of tax owed, acceptable to the mortgagee and the tax collector, may be substituted for the duplicate tax bill. A separate written request, with specific property identification, shall be required for each duplicate copy or form. The governing body of a city or town may establish a reasonable fee to be charged for each duplicate copy or form. [Resident tax bills may be included with property tax bills when the inclusion of such resident tax bills will not unduly delay the mailing of either the resident or property tax bills.]
3 Assessment of Taxes; Interest; Reference Deleted. Amend RSA 76:13 to read as follows:
76:13 Interest. Interest at 12 percent per annum shall be charged upon all taxes [except resident taxes,] except as otherwise provided by statute, not paid on or before December 1 after their assessment, which shall be collected from that date with the taxes as incident thereto, except in the case where a tax bill sent to the taxpayer on or after November 2 and before April 1 of the following year interest shall not be charged until 30 days after the bills are mailed. Interest due in an amount up to $25 may be waived by the collector, with the approval and consent of the board of selectmen and the board of assessors, if in the collector’s judgment the administrative and collection costs involved do not warrant collection of the amount due. The tax collector shall state on the tax bill the date from which interest will be charged and such date shall be determined by the day the collector sends out the last tax bill on the list. The collector shall notify the board of tax and land appeals in writing of the date on which the last tax bill was sent.
4 Current Use Taxation; Reference Changed. Amend RSA 79-A:23 to read as follows:
79-A:23 Enforcement. All taxes levied pursuant to RSA 79-A:7 which shall not be paid when due shall be collected in the same manner as provided in RSA [80:1-42-a] 80.
5 Collection of Taxes. Amend the subdivision heading preceding RSA 80:1 to read as follows:
[Resident Taxes and] Relocation of Buildings
6 Collection of Taxes; Discount; Reference Deleted. Amend RSA 80:52 to read as follows:
80:52 Discount. Any town may, by vote at the annual meeting, direct a discount to be made to those persons who shall pay their taxes within such periods as the town may limit; and every person so paying shall be entitled to such discount[; provided, that no discount shall be granted on resident taxes].
7 Motor Vehicles; Definition of Domicile; Reference Deleted. Amend RSA 259:23 to read as follows:
259:23 Domicile. “Domicile” shall mean a natural person taking up residence in a town or city within the state and includes but is not limited to occupying a primary place of habitation, placing children in a public school within the state, accepting gainful employment, [or being a registered voter liable for a resident tax,] provided, however, that no person shall be considered to be domiciled in this state who simultaneously claims residence in any other state for any of the purposes indicated above. In the case of other than a natural person, domicile shall also apply in the case of vehicles principally garaged or kept on the premises of a firm or corporation with a place of business within the state.
8 Registration of Vehicles; Dealer Agent. Amend RSA 261:74-k to read as follows:
261:74-k Duties of Dealer Agents. Each dealer agent or its staff shall perform all the duties necessary to register motor vehicles, issue a permit for registration, transfer motor vehicle registrations, and process title applications unless the director determines otherwise. Dealers shall be responsible to the division, or towns and cities where applicable, for any inventory of title applications, registration forms, and any other materials issued to them and for all moneys collected. The dealer agent through the EVR integrator shall electronically transmit to the appropriate town or city a copy of the newly issued registration permit and a signed affidavit of residency, and, where applicable, a copy of the registration transferred [and a copy of either the resident tax affidavit or the tax receipt as set forth in 261:74-n, III]. Dealer agents shall be in compliance with the Red Flags Rule, 16 C.F.R. part 681, and the Safeguards Rule, 16 C.F.R. part 314, as promulgated by the Federal Trade Commission.
9 Joint Owners of Motor Vehicle; Reference Deleted. Amend RSA 261:17, III to read as follows:
III. Individuals who are joint owners may provide for survivorship. If their joint ownership is held by using “and” between their names, they may obtain title as joint tenants with rights of survivorship by designating this preference on their title application. If their joint ownership is held by using “or” between their names, no other designation is required. Upon the death of one of the owners, the surviving owner may transfer the vehicle pursuant to RSA 261:14 without obtaining a new title. The signature of the surviving owner on the record and a copy of the death record shall be deemed valid and sufficient for the proper transfer of the motor vehicle. One of the joint owners may be a nonresident[, who shall be exempt from the requirements of RSA 261:71 for the purposes of this section only].
10 Repeal; Provisions on Resident Taxes. The following are repealed:
I. The subdivision heading preceding RSA 72:1, relative to resident taxes.
II. RSA 72:1 – RSA 72:1-c, relative to the assessment and collection of the resident tax.
III. RSA 72:3-a, relative to armed forces exemption from resident tax.
IV. RSA 72:5 – RSA 72:5-c, relative to procedures for collection of resident taxes.
V. RSA 73:1, relative to location for resident taxes.
VI. RSA 76:12, relative to the list of resident taxes.
VII. RSA 76:13-a, relative to penalty for late resident taxes.
VIII. RSA 76:16-c, relative to abatement of resident taxes.
IX. RSA 80:1 and RSA 80:1-a, relative to collection of resident taxes.
X. RSA 80:3, relative to default in payment of resident taxes.
XI. RSA 261:71- RSA 261:73, relative to proof of payment of resident taxes.
XII. RSA 261:74-n, III, relative to resident tax payment for registration of vehicles.
XIII. RSA 263:15, relative to driver’s license requirements of resident tax payment.
11 New Section; Collection of Taxes; Definition of Tax Collector. Amend RSA 80 by inserting after section 4 the following new section:
80:4-a Definition; Tax Collector. In this chapter, “tax collector” or “collector” means the person duly elected or appointed, and their authorized agents, having the duty and power, within the taxing district, to collect taxes issued under warrant and to enforce payment of taxes including the assessment of interest and penalties, and who shall pay over taxes collected as provided in law.
12 Repeal. The following are repealed
I. RSA 80:41, relative to $5 penalty for excessive fees.
II. RSA 80:43 and RSA 80:44, relative to fees assessed by collectors for the sale of real estate and personal property.
13 Legislative Commission Established.
I. There is established a commission to revise RSA 80 governing the collection and enforcement of taxes.
II. The members of the commission shall be as follows:
(a) Five members of the house of representatives, appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives.
(b) Two members of the senate, appointed by the president of the senate.
III. Members of the commission shall receive mileage at the legislative rate when attending to the duties of the commission.
IV. The commission shall propose a revision of RSA 80, collection of taxes, with the specific goals of:
(a) Defining terms in RSA 80 and removing obsolete references.
(b) Repealing or amending the provisions of RSA 80 relating to tax sales, and requiring enforcement under the optional tax lien procedure.
(c) Deleting or adjusting the fees charged for collection and enforcement of taxes.
(d) Clarifying the application of RSA 80 to real property and exclusion from its application to personal property.
(e) Any other matter the commission deems relevant to its charge in revising RSA 80.
V. The commission may solicit and utilize the input and expertise of individuals and organizations to assist in its duties under this section.
VI. The members of the commission shall elect a chairperson from among the members. The first meeting of the commission shall be called by the first-named house member. The first meeting of the commission shall be held within 45 days of the effective date of this section. Four members of the commission shall constitute a quorum.
VII. The commission shall report its findings and any recommendations for proposed legislation to the speaker of the house of representatives, the president of the senate, the house clerk, the senate clerk, the governor, and the state library in an interim report on or before November 1, 2015, and in a final report on or before November 1, 2016.
14 Effective Date.
I. Sections 1-10 of this act shall take effect April 1, 2015.
II. Sections 11 and 12 of this act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
III. The remainder of this act shall take effect upon its passage.
LBAO
15-0437
Revised 01/30/15
HB 639-FN-LOCAL FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT repealing the resident tax, relative to tax collection under RSA 80, and establishing a legislative commissioner to revise RSA 80 governing the collection and enforcement of taxes.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Department of Revenue Administration states this bill, as introduced, will have an indeterminable impact on local revenue in FY 2016 and each year thereafter. There will be no impact on state, county, and local expenditures or state and county revenue.
METHODOLOGY:
The Department of Revenue Administration states this bill repeals the resident tax, removes the requirements for proof of payment of resident taxes, adds a definition of tax collector and repeals certain fees under RSA 80, and establishes a legislative commission to revise RSA 80. The Department is unable to calculate the amount by which local revenue may be reduced because there is no readily available way of determining which of the cities and towns are collecting resident taxes.