COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 504
(By Senators McCabe, Plymale, Jenkins, Foster and Unger)
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[Originating in the Committee on Economic Development;
reported March 22, 2005.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §18B-13-4 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to technical changes concerning
high-tech research zones, parks and technology centers; and
tax incentives relating thereto.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §18B-13-4 of the code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
§18B-13-4. High-Tech research zones, parks and technology centers;
tax incentives.
(a) The state development council West Virginia Development Office
shall work with the county commissions, the municipalities and
local development authorities where state colleges and universities
are located and shall develop a plan and grant program for the
establishment and operation of qualifying High-Tech 2000 research
zones, parks and technology centers on or near the campuses of
selected qualified universities and colleges to attract local business and industry engaged in science and technology related
research and development. The state development council shall
coordinate the development of such plan and grant program, which
shall include qualifications for eligible that are to be met in
order to receive approval by the council West Virginia Development
Office as a research zone, park or technology center or as a
qualified business. Those High-Tech 2000 research zones, parks and
research centers and which qualifications shall require a minimum
partnership commitment from one or more qualified businesses in the
private sector either in the construction, operation or location of
the research zone, park or technology center. The council West
Virginia Development Office shall designate the particular
geographic area comprising the research zone, park or technology
center. research parks or zones or technology centers; and the
The West Virginia economic development authority is authorized
shall have authority to enter into agreements with state
institutions of higher education, private developers or other
interested businesses or persons to acquire, finance, construct,
operate, own, lease or otherwise manage any research zone, park or
zone technology center and to collect rentals or other forms of
payment for the operation of the research zones, parks parks or
zones or technology centers. The West Virginia economic
development authority is hereby authorized either singularly singly
or in conjunction with any county commission, municipality or local
development authority, to issue special High-Tech 2000 bonds for
the purpose of this section, including, but not limited to, special project revenue bonds and special user bonds limited to the actual
cost of construction and start-up of any qualifying and approved
research park or zone zones, parks or technology centers, and
improvements necessary thereto, pursuant to article twelve-b,
chapter eighteen of this code.(b) Notwithstanding any other
provision of this code article to the contrary, no exemption,
credit or deferral under this subsection (b) is available after the
thirty-first day of December, two thousand three. relating to any
other exemptions or credits to which any business may be entitled
under this code, t The following exemptions tax incentives in
subsection (c) rather than those in this subsection (b) shall only
apply to an approved qualified business participating in the
construction, operation or location of a approved High-Tech 2000
research park or zone zone, park or technology center approved
after the thirty-first day of December, two thousand three:(1) The
enterprise zone tax exemptions as provided in section five, article
two-b, chapter five-b of this code prior to their repeal in one
thousand nine hundred ninety-seven;(2) A tax credit for qualified
business, in the amount of the workers' compensation premium paid
in accordance with article two, chapter twenty-three of this code,
which credit shall be credited against any corporate net income tax
or personal income tax of the qualified business or liability of
the owners of the qualified business which is a proprietorship or
a partnership;(3) The deferral for qualified business of all state
corporate net income tax, business and occupation tax,
telecommunications tax, severance tax, business franchise tax or other state income tax liability for the start-up period of the
business not to exceed three years, and qualified business shall be
entitled to an exemption from any such deferred tax if such
business both employs at least seven persons on a full-time basis
as of the due date of the deferred tax liability, and the qualified
business maintains an average employment of at least seven full-
time employees over the last two years of the three year start-up
period.Notwithstanding any other provision herein to the contrary,
the amount of total credits and deferrals allowable under this
section or section five, article two-b, chapter five-b of this
code, shall not exceed two and one-half million dollars in any one
fiscal year for all eligible qualified businesses: Provided, That
the credits allowed by this section are nonrefundable so that a
taxpayer shall not claim a total credit amount that reduces the
taxpayer's tax liability to less than zero.
(c) For taxable years beginning on and after the first day of
January, two thousand five, any qualified business approved by the
council West Virginia Development Office on or after the first day
of January, two thousand four, shall be deemed to be (1) a business
eligible for economic opportunity tax credit entitlement pursuant
to section nineteen, article thirteen-q, chapter eleven of the
code, and entitled to the twenty percent new jobs percentage under
section nine of that article, if it creates at least seven new jobs
in a research zone, park or technology center; (2) an eligible
taxpayer for purposes of the strategic research and development
credit provided under article thirteen-r, chapter eleven of the code; (3) an industrial taxpayer for purposes of the manufacturing
investment tax provided under article thirteen-s, chapter eleven of
the code if it is primarily engaged in manufacturing related to
research and development; and (4) entitled to priority for approval
of refundable credit for the small qualified research and
development company credit under section six, article thirteen-r,
chapter eleven of the code ahead of eligible taxpayers that are not
qualified businesses under subsection (d) of this section:
Provided, That the qualified business otherwise meets the
requirements for those credits.
(d) As used in this article:
(1) "West Virginia state development council", "state
development council" and "council" mean the council for community
and economic development created under article five, chapter five-b
of this code.
(2) (1) "Qualified business" means a business registered to do
business in this state which is engaged in science and technology
related "manufacturing" (as defined in section three, article
thirteen-s, chapter eleven of this code) or science and technology
related "research and development" (as defined in section three,
article thirteen-q, or section three, article thirteen-r, chapter
eleven of this code) within a research zone, park or technology
center.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to make technical changes
concerning High-Tech 2000 research zones, parks and technology
centers and tax incentives relating thereto.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.