H. B. 2490
(By Delegates Susman, Hatfield and Fleischauer)
[Introduced February 22, 2001; referred to the
Committee on Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact section three, article fifteen, chapter
eleven of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred
thirty-one, as amended, relating to the consumers sales tax;
and phasing out the sales tax on food over a period of up to
ten years.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section three, article fifteen, chapter eleven of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 15. CONSUMERS SALES TAX.
§11-15-3. Amount of tax; allocation of tax and transfers.
(a) For the privilege of selling tangible personal property
and of dispensing certain selected services defined in sections two and eight of this article, the vendor shall collect from the
purchaser the tax as provided under this article, and shall pay the
amount of tax to the tax commissioner in accordance with the
provisions of this article.
(b) Beginning on the first day of March, one thousand nine
hundred eighty-nine, the general consumer sales and service tax
imposed by this article shall be at the rate of six cents on the
dollar of sales or services, excluding gasoline and special fuel
sales, which remain taxable at the rate of five cents on the dollar
of sales.
(c) Beginning on the first day of January, two thousand two,
and each year thereafter, the general consumer sales and service
tax imposed by this article on food shall be reduced by an amount
equal to the increase in the revenue collections of the general
consumer sales and service tax from the past tax year over the
revenue collections of the general consumer sales and service tax
from the proceeding year before that. Beginning on the fifteenth
day of August, two thousand one, and each year thereafter, when the
past tax year's general consumer sales and service tax revenue
collections are certified by the treasurer and the auditor, the
amount of surplus revenue collections, if any, over the preceding year's revenue collections shall be determined, and the rate of the
sales tax on food shall be reduced in an amount proportionate to
the surplus revenue collections. At a minimum, the general
consumer sales and service tax on food shall be reduced each year
for ten years at a rate of at least one-half cent on the dollar of
sales or services, irrespective of the size, or absence, of any
surplus revenue collections. On the first day of January, two
thousand twelve, the remaining general consumer sales and service
tax on food shall be removed.
(c) (d) There shall be no tax on sales where the monetary
consideration is five cents or less. The amount of the tax shall
be computed as follows:
(1) On each sale, where the monetary consideration is from six
cents to sixteen cents, both inclusive, one cent.
(2) On each sale, where the monetary consideration is from
seventeen cents to thirty-three cents, both inclusive, two cents.
(3) On each sale, where the monetary consideration is from
thirty-four cents to fifty cents, both inclusive, three cents.
(4) On each sale, where the monetary consideration is from
fifty-one cents to sixty-seven cents, both inclusive, four cents.
(5) On each sale, where the monetary consideration is from sixty-eight cents to eighty-four cents, both inclusive, five cents.
(6) On each sale, where the monetary consideration is from
eighty-five cents to one dollar, both inclusive, six cents.
(7) If the sale price is in excess of one dollar, six cents on
each whole dollar of sale price, and upon any fractional part of a
dollar in excess of whole dollars as follows: One cent on the
fractional part of the dollar if less than seventeen cents; two
cents on the fractional part of the dollar if in excess of sixteen
cents but less than thirty-four cents; three cents on the
fractional part of the dollar if in excess of thirty-three cents
but less than fifty-one cents; four cents on the fractional part of
the dollar if in excess of fifty cents but less than sixty-eight
cents; five cents on the fractional part of the dollar if in excess
of sixty-seven cents but less than eighty-five cents; and six cents
on the fractional part of the dollar if in excess of eighty-four
cents. For example, the tax on sales from one dollar and one cent
to one dollar and sixteen cents, both inclusive, seven cents; on
sales from one dollar and seventeen cents to one dollar and
thirty-three cents, both inclusive, eight cents; on sales from one
dollar and thirty-four cents to one dollar and fifty cents, both
inclusive, nine cents; on sales from one dollar and fifty-one cents to one dollar and sixty-seven cents, both inclusive, ten cents; on
sales from one dollar and sixty-eight cents to one dollar and
eighty-four cents, both inclusive, eleven cents and on sales from
one dollar and eighty-five cents to two dollars, both inclusive,
twelve cents.
(d) (e) Separate sales, such as daily or weekly deliveries,
shall may not be aggregated for the purpose of computation of the
tax even though
such the sales are aggregated in the billing or
payment therefor. Notwithstanding any other provision,
coin-operated amusement and vending machine sales shall be
aggregated for the purpose of computation of this tax.
(e) (f) Of the taxes collected under the provisions of this
article, one sixth of
such the taxes collected for the period
subsequent to the thirty-first day of May, one thousand nine
hundred eighty-eight prior to the first day of July, one thousand
nine hundred eighty-nine, and not attributable to or resulting from
the repeal of section eleven of this article or attributable to tax
on purchases of gasoline and special fuel, shall be reasonably
allocated, with allowance for refunds and net of reasonable costs
of administration, to and deposited by the tax commissioner in the
special account created in the treasury by section eight-a, article four-b, chapter twenty-three of this code, not to exceed the amount
sufficient for making timely repayment of the principal and
interest under the first payment due, by the thirtieth day of June,
one thousand nine hundred eighty-nine, in repayment for the moneys
previously transferred from
such the pneumoconiosis fund.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to phase out the sales tax
on food over a period of ten years, or sooner if surplus revenue
collections permit a quicker reduction.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.
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