Senate Bill No. 143
(By Senators Tomblin, Mr. President, and Sprouse,
By Request of the Executive)
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[Introduced January 19, 2000; referred to the Committee on
Finance.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section nine, article twenty-one,
chapter eleven of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to updating the
meaning of certain terms used in the West Virginia personal
income tax act by bringing them into conformity with their
meanings for federal income tax purposes; and specifying
effective dates.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section nine, article twenty-one, 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 21. PERSONAL INCOME TAX.
§11-21-9. Meaning of terms.
(a) Any term used in this article shall have the same meaning
as when used in a comparable context in the laws of the United
States relating to income taxes, unless a different meaning is
clearly required. Any reference in this article to the laws of the
United States shall mean the provisions of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986, as amended, and any other provisions of the laws of
the United States as relate to the determination of income for
federal income tax purposes. All amendments made to the laws of
the United States after the thirty-first day of December, one
thousand nine hundred ninety-seven ninety-eight, but prior to the
first day of January, one thousand nine hundred ninety-nine two
thousand, shall be given effect in determining the taxes imposed by
this article to the same extent those changes are allowed for
federal income tax purposes, whether such changes are retroactive
or prospective, but no amendment to the laws of the United States
made on or after the first day of January, one thousand nine
hundred ninety-nine two thousand, shall be given any effect.
(b) Medical savings accounts. -- The term "taxable trust" does
not include a medical savings account established pursuant to
section twenty, article fifteen, chapter thirty-three of this code
or section fifteen, article sixteen of said chapter. Employer
contributions to a medical savings account established pursuant to said sections, are not "wages" for purposes of withholding under
section seventy-one of this article.
(c) Surtax. -- The term "surtax" means the twenty percent
additional tax imposed on taxable withdrawals from a medical
savings account under section twenty, article fifteen, chapter
thirty-three of this code, and the twenty percent additional tax
imposed on taxable withdrawals from a medical savings account under
section fifteen, article sixteen of said chapter, which are
collected by the tax commissioner as tax collected under this
article.
(d) Effective date. -- The amendments to this section enacted
in the year one thousand nine hundred ninety-nine two thousand,
shall be retroactive to the extent allowable under federal income
tax law. With respect to taxable years that begin prior to the
first day of January, one thousand nine hundred ninety-eight
ninety-nine, the law in effect for each of those years shall be
fully preserved as to such year, except as provided in this
section.
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(NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to update the meanings of
terms used but not defined in the West Virginia Personal Income Tax
Act by bringing them into conformity with their meanings for
federal income tax purposes.
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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FINANCE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS
On page one, section nine, line twenty-three, by striking out
the words "shall have" and inserting in lieu thereof the word
"has";
On page two, section nine, line two, by striking out the words
"shall mean" and inserting in lieu thereof the word "means";
On page two, section nine, line four, by striking out the word
"as" and inserting in lieu thereof the word "that";
On page two, section nine, line eleven, by striking out the
word "such" and inserting in lieu thereof the word "the";
On page three, section nine, line seven, by striking out the
words "shall be" and inserting in lieu thereof the word "are";
And,
On page three, section nine, line eleven, by striking out the
word "such" and inserting in lieu thereof the word "that".