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Senate Engrossed |
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State of Arizona Senate Fiftieth Legislature Second Regular Session 2012
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SENATE BILL 1122 |
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AN ACT
Amending sections 16-954, 43-613, 43-614, 43-615, 43-616 and 43-618, Arizona Revised Statutes; relating to individual income tax refunds.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Subject to the requirements of article IV, part 1, section 1, Constitution of Arizona, section 16-954, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
16-954. Clean elections tax reduction; return of excess monies
A. For tax years beginning on or after January 1, 1998, a taxpayer who files on a state income tax return form may designate a five‑dollar voluntary contribution per taxpayer to the fund by marking an optional check‑off checkoff box on the first page of the form. A taxpayer who checks this box shall receive a five‑dollar reduction in the amount of tax, and five dollars from the amount of taxes paid shall be transferred by the department of revenue to the fund. The department of revenue shall provide check‑off checkoff boxes, identified as the clean elections fund tax reduction, on the first page of income tax return forms, for designations pursuant to this subsection.
B. Any taxpayer may make a voluntary donation to the fund by designating the fund on an income tax return form filed by the individual or business entity or by making a payment directly to the fund. Any taxpayer making a donation pursuant to this subsection shall receive a dollar‑for‑dollar tax credit not to exceed twenty percent per cent of the tax amount on the return or five hundred dollars per taxpayer, whichever is higher. Donations made pursuant to this section are otherwise not tax deductible and cannot be designated as for the benefit of a particular candidate, political party, or election contest. The department of revenue shall transfer to the fund all donations made pursuant to this subsection. The department of revenue shall provide a space, identified as the clean elections fund tax credit, on the first page of income tax return forms, for donations pursuant to this subsection.
C. Beginning January 1, 1999, an additional surcharge of ten percent per cent shall be imposed on all civil and criminal fines and penalties collected pursuant to section 12‑116.01 and shall be deposited into the fund.
D. At least once per year, the commission shall project the amount of monies that the fund will collect over the next four years and the time such monies shall become available. Whenever the commission determines that the fund contains more monies than the commission determines that it requires to meet current debts plus expected expenses, under the assumption that expected expenses will be at the expenditure limit in section 16‑949, subsection A, and taking into account the projections of collections, the commission shall designate such monies as excess monies and so notify the state treasurer, who shall thereupon return the excess monies to the general fund.
E. At least once per year, the commission shall project the amount of citizen funding for which all candidates will have qualified pursuant to this article for the following calendar year. By the end of each year, the commission shall announce whether the amount that the commission plans to spend the following year pursuant to section 16‑949, subsection A exceeds the projected amount of citizen funding. If the commission determines that the fund contains insufficient monies or the spending cap would be exceeded were all candidate's candidates' accounts to be fully funded, then the commission may include in the announcement specifications for decreases in the following parameters, based on the commission's projections of collections and expenses for the fund, made in the following order:
1. First, The commission may announce a decrease in the matching cap under section 16‑952, subsection E from three times to an amount between three and one times.
2. Next, The commission may announce that the fund will provide equalization monies under section 16‑952, subsections A and B as a fraction of the amounts there specified.
3. Finally, The commission may announce that the fund will provide monies under section 16‑951 as a fraction of the amounts there specified.
F. If the commission cannot provide participating candidates with all monies specified under sections 16‑951 and 16‑952, as decreased by any announcement pursuant to subsection E of this section, then the commission shall allocate any reductions in payments proportionately among candidates entitled to monies and shall declare an emergency. Upon declaration of an emergency, a participating candidate may accept private contributions to bring the total monies received by the candidate from the fund and from such private contributions up to the adjusted spending limits, as decreased by any announcement made pursuant to subsection E of this section.
Sec. 2. Section 43-613, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
43-613. Contribution to child abuse prevention fund
A. Unless not required pursuant to subsection B of this section, the department shall provide a space on the first page of the individual income tax return form in which the taxpayer may designate an amount of the taxpayer's refund as a voluntary contribution to the child abuse prevention fund established under section 8‑550.01.
B. After subtracting any setoff for debts pursuant to section 42‑1122 the department of revenue shall subtract the designated amount from the refund due the taxpayer and transfer it to the department of economic security for credit to the fund. The department shall determine the initial administrative cost of this section and report the amount to the department of economic security who shall transfer that amount from the fund to the state general fund. The department of economic security shall separately account for the monies in the fund derived from contributions under this section and notify the department of revenue if such monies exceed ten million dollars. If such monies do exceed ten million dollars on June 30, this section does not apply and the department of revenue shall not provide the space otherwise required by this section on the tax return for that taxable year.
C. The taxpayer may also donate any amount to the child abuse prevention fund, in lieu of or in addition to the designated portion of the income tax refund, by an appropriate indication on the return and by including that amount with the return.
Sec. 3. Section 43-614, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
43-614. Contribution of portion of refund to special olympics
A. The department shall provide a space on the first page of the individual income tax return form in which the taxpayer may designate an amount of the taxpayer's refund as a voluntary contribution to the special olympics tax refund fund established pursuant to section 41‑173.
B. After subtracting any setoff for debts pursuant to section 42‑1122 the department of revenue shall subtract the designated amount from the refund due the taxpayer. The department of revenue shall transfer the designated amount to the department of economic security for credit to the special olympics tax refund fund.
C. The taxpayer may also donate any amount to the special olympics tax refund fund, in lieu of or in addition to the designated portion of the income tax refund, by an appropriate indication on the return and by including that amount with the return.
Sec. 4. Section 43-615, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
43-615. Contribution to game, nongame, fish and endangered species fund
A. The department shall provide a space on the first page of the individual income tax return form in which the taxpayer may designate an amount of the taxpayer's refund as a voluntary contribution to the game, nongame, fish and endangered species fund established pursuant to section 17‑268.
B. After subtracting any setoff for debts pursuant to section 42‑1122, the department shall subtract the designated amount from the refund due the taxpayer and transfer it to the Arizona game and fish commission for deposit in the fund. The department shall determine the initial administrative cost of this section and report the amount to the commission who shall transfer that amount from the fund to the state general fund.
C. The taxpayer may also donate any amount to the game, nongame, fish and endangered species fund, in lieu of or in addition to the designated portion of the income tax refund, by an appropriate indication on the return and by including such amount with the return.
Sec. 5. Section 43-616, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
43-616. Contribution to neighbors helping neighbors fund
A. The department shall provide a space on the first page of the individual income tax return form in which the taxpayer may designate an amount of the taxpayer's refund as a voluntary contribution to the neighbors helping neighbors fund established pursuant to section 46‑741.
B. After subtracting any setoff for debts pursuant to section 42‑1122, the department of revenue shall subtract the designated amount from the refund due the taxpayer and transfer it to the department of economic security for deposit in the fund. The department shall determine the initial administrative cost of this section and report the amount to the department of economic security who shall transfer that amount from the fund to the state general fund.
C. The taxpayer may also donate any amount to the fund, in lieu of or in addition to the designated portion of the income tax refund, by an appropriate indication on the return and by including that amount with the return.
Sec. 6. Section 43-618, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
43-618. Contribution to domestic violence shelter fund
A. The department shall provide a space on the first page of the individual income tax return form in which the taxpayer may designate an amount of the taxpayer's refund as a voluntary contribution to the domestic violence shelter fund established pursuant to section 36-3002 as amended by Laws 1997, chapter 210.
B. After subtracting any setoff for debts pursuant to section 42‑1122, the department of revenue shall subtract the designated amount from the refund due the taxpayer and transfer it to the department of economic security for deposit in the fund. The department shall determine the initial administrative cost of this section and report the amount to the department of economic security who shall transfer that amount to the state general fund.
C. The taxpayer may also donate any amount to the fund, in lieu of or in addition to the designated portion of the tax refund, by an appropriate indication on the return and by including that amount with the return.
Sec. 7. Requirements for enactment; three-fourths vote
Pursuant to article IV, part 1, section 1, Constitution of Arizona, section 16-954, Arizona Revised Statutes, as amended by this act, is effective only on the affirmative vote of at least three-fourths of the members of each house of the legislature.
Sec. 8. Effective date
This act is effective and applies with respect to income tax returns for taxable years beginning from and after December 31, 2011.