Motor Fuel Tax Reduction Card Act
| Model Bill Info | |
|---|---|
| Bill Title | Motor Fuel Tax Reduction Card Act |
| Date Introduced | July 16, 2019 |
| Type | Model Policy |
| Status | Draft |
| Task Forces | Tax and Fiscal Policy |
Motor Fuel Tax Reduction Card Act
Section 1. Statement of Purpose
To amend and to enact sections of the Revised Code to levy an additional registration tax on passenger cars, noncommercial motor vehicles, and commercial cars and trucks beginning on January 1, 20XX; to authorize a per-gallon motor fuel retail price reduction for consumers that is equal to the state per-gallon motor fuel tax of $.xx; and to exempt each gallon of motor fuel that is sold at the reduced retail price from the state motor fuel tax.
Section 2. Motor Vehicle Use Tax Fund: Establishment
(A) There is hereby created in the state treasury the motor vehicle use tax fund. The fund shall consist of all money the registrar of motor vehicles receives under registration, renewal and inspection fees. All investment earnings of the fund shall be credited to the fund.
(B) All money in the fund shall be used in accordance with Motor Vehicle License and Fuel Tax statutes. The registrar shall distribute the money in the fund in the same manner and in the same proportions as revenue from the tax levied under other applicable motor fuel excise tax statutes.
Section 3. Motor Vehicle Use Tax Fund: Fees
(A) Except as otherwise provided in this division, commencing with each registration renewal with an expiration date on or after January 1, 20XX, and for each initial registration application received on and after that date, the registrar and each deputy registrar shall collect the following fee:
(1) For a passenger car or noncommercial motor vehicle, XX dollars;
(2) For commercial cars and commercial trucks, XX dollars.
The additional fee is a prepayment of the tax that would otherwise be collected on motor fuel purchased for use in such vehicles. The additional fee shall be used to provide funds for the purposes such as administering laws, statutory refunds, payment of highway obligations, costs for construction, reconstruction, maintenance and repair of public highways and bridges and other statutory highway purposes. Each deputy registrar shall transmit the fees collected in the time and manner provided in this section. The registrar shall deposit all moneys received into the motor vehicle use tax fund. A Medicaid recipient may request an exemption from the fee. The registrar shall exempt any Medicaid recipient who requests such exemption and provides documentary evidence of the recipient’s Medicaid status as the registrar shall require and specify by rule. The rules adopted by the registrar shall not violate applicable Medical Assistance/Medicaid statutes. Any person who is exempted from the fee under this division shall not receive the prepaid use tax card.
Section 4. Prepaid Use Tax Card
(A) Commencing with each registration renewal with an expiration date on or after January 1, 20XX, and for each initial registration application received on and after that date for a motor vehicle described in Section 3, the registrar of motor vehicles shall issue with each motor vehicle certificate of registration a prepaid use tax card. The registrar shall adopt rules to determine the form of the prepaid use tax card, which may be incorporated into a driver’s license or state identification card, or produced by a private entity. The prepaid use tax card shall contain all of the following information in a form the registrar shall prescribe:
(1) The name and residence address of the owner;
(2) A brief description of the motor vehicle for which the card is issued, which shall be the same vehicle for which the related certificate of registration is issued;
(3) Whether the vehicle is or is not a commercial car or commercial truck;
(4) A unique prepaid use tax card number;
(5) Any other information as the registrar may specify for inclusion on the card.
(B) Commencing on January 1, 20XX, a person who is not a resident of this state and is the registered owner of a motor vehicle that would be registered in this state as a passenger car or a non-commercial motor vehicle and is registered in another state may purchase a prepaid use tax card for that motor vehicle only from the registrar. The cost for such a card is equal to the fee established under Section 2 of this Act. Commencing on January 1, 20XX, a person who is not a resident of this state and is the registered owner of a motor vehicle that would be registered in this state as a commercial car or commercial truck and is registered in another state may purchase a prepaid use tax card for that motor vehicle only from the registrar. The cost for such a card is equal to the fee established under Section 2 of this Act. A prepaid use tax card purchased under this section shall include all of the information specified under divisions (A)(1) to (5) of this section. The registrar shall deposit all money received under this division into the motor vehicle use tax fund.
(C) All prepaid use tax cards remain the property of the bureau of motor vehicles, and a card may be canceled or recalled, and the registrar may order a card to be seized by a law enforcement officer, in accordance with criteria the registrar shall establish. A person whose card is canceled, recalled, or seized may appeal such action to the registrar in accordance with an appeal procedure the registrar shall establish. A person may appeal an adverse decision of the registrar at the appeal procedure to the proper court of common pleas.
(D) The registrar shall adopt such rules as the registrar may determine necessary to implement this section, including provisions governing the grounds for cancellation of a prepaid use tax card, the replacement of a damaged, defective, lost, mutilated, or stolen card, the grounds for seizure of a card by a law enforcement officer, and the appeal procedure required by division (C) of this section.
(E)(1) No person other than the registrar or an agent of the registrar shall create or reproduce a prepaid use tax card. No person shall tamper with a prepaid use tax card.
(2) Except as provided in division (E)(2) of this section, whoever violates division (E)(1) of this section is guilty of a felony of the fifth degree. Whoever violates division (E)(1) of this section and previously has pleaded guilty to or been convicted of one or more such violations is guilty of a felony of the fourth degree.
(3) The offenses established under division (E)(1) of this section are strict liability offenses and strict liability is a culpable mental state. The designation of these offenses as strict liability offenses shall not be construed to imply that any other offense, for which there is no specified degree of culpability, is not a strict liability offense.
Section 5. Reports Filed With Commissioner
(A) As used in this section, “prepaid use tax card” means the prepaid use tax card issued by the registrar of motor vehicles under Section 4 of this Act.
(B) On or before February 5, 20XX, and on or before the fifth day of each month thereafter, each retail dealer shall file with the tax commissioner a report for the preceding calendar month, on forms prescribed by the commissioner. The report shall include all of the following information:
(1) The number of gallons of motor fuel the retail dealer sold at retail during the preceding calendar month;
(2) The number of gallons of motor fuel described in division (B)(1) of this section against which a price reduction was applied pursuant to this Act;
(3) The name and address of each motor fuel dealer or other person from which the retail dealer obtained motor fuel that the dealer sold at retail during the preceding calendar month;
(4) The number of gallons of motor fuel described in division (B)(2) of this section that were obtained from each motor fuel dealer or other person listed under division (B)(3) of this section;
(5) The prepaid use tax card number of each card used to reduce the price of motor fuel sold at retail by the retail dealer during the preceding month and the number of gallons of motor fuel with respect to which each such card was used to apply a price reduction pursuant to this Act.
(C) On or before February 5, 20XX, and on or before the fifth day of each month thereafter, each retail dealer shall certify the following information to each motor fuel dealer from which the retail dealer obtained motor fuel that the dealer sold at retail during the preceding month:
(1) The number of gallons of motor fuel obtained from the motor fuel dealer that the retail dealer sold at retail during the preceding month;
(2) The number of gallons of motor fuel described in division (B)(1) of this section against which a price reduction was applied pursuant to this Act.
Section 6. Use of Prepaid Use Tax Card
(A) As used in this section, “prepaid use tax card” means the prepaid use tax card issued by the registrar of motor vehicles under Section 4 of this Act.
(B) A person who purchases motor fuel at retail for a motor vehicle from a retail dealer that has the necessary equipment that meets the criteria established under division (E) of this section may present to the retail dealer the prepaid use tax card that was issued for that motor vehicle. Upon processing by the retail dealer, the per-gallon price of the motor fuel shall be reduced by an amount that is equal to the applicable per-gallon rate of the motor fuel excise tax imposed by applicable statute.
(C) The registered owner of a motor vehicle may authorize any other person to utilize the prepaid use tax card that was issued for that motor vehicle when purchasing motor fuel for that motor vehicle.
(D) A prepaid use tax card that is issued under this Act to a person who is not a resident of this state is valid only when motor fuel is purchased for the motor vehicle for which the card is issued.
(E) The tax commissioner, in consultation with the registrar, shall adopt any rules the tax commissioner determines necessary to implement this section, including establishing the criteria that equipment must meet in order to be approved to process a prepaid use tax card. The tax commissioner shall take any measures necessary to prevent the fraudulent use of prepaid use tax cards.
(F)(1) No person may utilize a prepaid use tax card when purchasing motor fuel for any motor vehicle other than the motor vehicle for which the card is issued.
(2) Except as otherwise provided in division (F)(2) of this section, whoever recklessly violates division (F)(1) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree. Whoever recklessly violates division (F)(1) of this section who previously has pleaded guilty to or been convicted of one such violation is guilty of a misdemeanor of the third degree. Whoever recklessly violates division (F)(1) of this section and previously has pleaded guilty to or been convicted of two such violations is guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree. Whoever recklessly violates division (F)(1) of this section and previously has pleaded guilty to or been convicted of three such violations is guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree. Whoever recklessly violates division (F)(1) of this section and previously has pleaded guilty to or been convicted of four or more such violations is guilty of a felony of the fifth degree.
Section 7. {Repealer Clause}
