ENGROSSED
Senate Bill No. 623
(By Senator Tomblin, Mr. President)
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[Introduced February 22, 1999;
referred to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend article twenty-one, chapter eleven of the code of
West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated section
eight-g, relating to providing a tax credit from the
personal income tax to encourage preservation of West
Virginia's historic houses and neighborhoods.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article twenty-one, chapter eleven of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section
eight-g, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 21. PERSONAL INCOME TAX.
§11-21-8g. Credit for qualified rehabilitated residential
buildings investment.
(a) A credit against the tax imposed by the provisions of this article is allowed for residential certified historic
structures. The credit is equal to twenty percent of eligible
rehabilitation expenses in the rehabilitation of a certified
historic structure. The credit is available for residential
certified historic structures located in this state that are
reviewed by the West Virginia division of culture and history and
designated by the national park service, United States department
of the interior as "certified historic structures" as defined in
26 U.S.C. §47.
(b)(1) "Certified historic structure" means any building
located in this state that is listed individually in the national
register of historic places or located in a registered historic
district, reviewed by the West Virginia division of culture and
history and certified by the national park service as being of
historic significance to the district.
(2) "Certified rehabilitation" means any rehabilitation of
a certified historic structure that is reviewed by the West
Virginia division of culture and history, and certified by the
national park service as being consistent with the historic
character of the property and, where applicable, the district in
which it is located.
(3) "Eligible rehabilitation expenses" means expenses
incurred in the material rehabilitation of a certified historic
structure and added to the property's basis for income tax purposes.
(4) "Historic district" means any district that is listed in
the national register of historic places or designated under a
state or local statute which has been certified as containing
criteria which will substantially achieve the purpose of
preserving and rehabilitating buildings of significance to the
district and which is certified as substantially meeting all of
the requirements for listing of districts in the national
register of historic places.
(5) "Historic preservation application" means application
forms published by the national park service, United States
department of the interior, Parts 1, 2 and 3, Form No. 1-168, or
its successor.
(6) "Material rehabilitation" means improvements or
reconstruction consistent with the "Secretary of the Interior's
Standards for Rehabilitation," the actual cost of which amounts
to at least twenty percent of the assessed value of a certified
historic structure for ad valorem real estate tax purposes for
the year before such rehabilitation expenses were incurred,
exclusive of the assessed value of the land.
(7) "Residential certified historic structure" means any
certified historic structure that is:
(A) Classified as Class II property for levy purposes
pursuant to section five, article eight, chapter eleven of this code for the year in which the rehabilitation expenses are
incurred; or
(B) Not classified as Class II property for levy purposes
for the year in which the rehabilitation expenses are incurred
but will satisfy the requirements for classification as Class II
for real property assessment purposes pursuant to section five,
article eight, chapter eleven of this code as of the first day of
July of the year following the year in which the rehabilitation
expenses are incurred.
(8) "Secretary of the interior standards" means standards
and guidelines adopted and published by the national park
service, United States department of the interior, for
rehabilitation of historic properties.
(9) "State historic preservation office" means the state
official designated by the governor pursuant to provisions in the
National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended and
further defined in section six, article one, chapter twenty-nine
of this code.
(c)(1) Application and processing procedures for provisions
of this section shall be the same or substantially similar as any
required under provisions of 36 C.F.R., Part 67, and 26 C.F.R.,
Part 1. Obtaining historic preservation certification by proper
application automatically qualifies the applicant to be
considered for tax credits under this section.
(2) The state historic preservation officer's role in the
application procedure shall be identical, or substantially
similar, to that in 36 C.F.R., Part 67 and 26 C.F.R., Part 1, to
the extent applicable.
(d) All standards including the secretary of the interior
standards and provisions in 36 C.F.R., Part 67 and 26 C.F.R, Part
1 that apply to tax credits available from the United States
government apply to this section, except that the property
eligible for the tax credit under this article may not be income
producing property or property for which depreciation is allowed
under 26 U.S.C. §168.
(e) If the amount of the credit for qualified rehabilitated
residential buildings investment exceeds the taxpayer's tax
liability for the taxable year to which the credit applies, the
amount that exceeds the tax liability for the taxable year may be
carried over for credits against the income taxes of the taxpayer
in each of the ensuing five tax years or until the full credit is
used, whichever occurs first. In no event, may the amount of the
credit taken in a taxable year exceed the tax liability due for
the taxable year.
(f) The tax commissioner shall require disclosure of
information regarding credits granted pursuant to this section in
accordance with the provisions of section five-s, article ten of
this chapter. The commissioner of the West Virginia division of culture and history may establish by rule the requirements to
implement the credit for qualified rehabilitated residential
buildings investment, including reasonable fees to defray the
necessary expenses of administration of the credit.
(g) The credit authorized by this section shall be available
for tax years beginning after the thirty-first day of December,
one thousand nine hundred ninety-nine.