ENROLLED
Senate Bill No. 582
(By Senators Helmick, Plymale, Prezioso and Minard)
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[Passed March 8, 2006; in effect ninety days from passage.]
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AN ACT to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by
adding thereto a new section, designated §11-21-54, relating
to personal income tax; and requiring certain tax preparers to
file certain personal income tax returns of their clients
electronically.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended
by adding thereto a new section, designated §11-21-54, to read as
follows:
ARTICLE 21. PERSONAL INCOME TAX.
§11-21-54. Electronic filing for certain tax preparers.
(a) If an income tax return preparer filed more than one
hundred personal income tax returns for any taxable year that began
after the first day of January, two thousand five, and if during
calendar year two thousand six or any calendar year thereafter that income tax preparer prepares one or more personal income tax
returns using tax preparation software for a previous taxable year,
then for each current taxable year all unamended personal income
tax returns prepared by that preparer shall be filed
electronically, except as provided in subsections (c) and (d) of
this section.
(b) For purposes of this section:
(1) "Income tax preparer" means any person who prepares, in
exchange for compensation, or who employs another person to
prepare, in exchange for compensation, all or a substantial portion
of any return for a taxpayer for the tax imposed by this article
and who is identified as the preparer for the taxpayer on the
return. A person who only performs those acts described in clauses
(i) through (iv) of Section 7701(a)(36)(B) of the Internal Revenue
Code with respect to the preparation of a return for a trust or
estate for which he or she is a fiduciary or a return for a
partnership of which he or she is a partner is not an income tax
preparer for purposes of this section.
(2) "Electronic filing" or "e-filing" means filing using
electronic technology such as computer modem, magnetic media,
optical disk, facsimile machine, telephone or other technology
approved by the Tax Commissioner, in such manner as he or she deems
acceptable.
(3) "Tax preparation software" means any computer software
program intended for accounting or tax return preparation.
(c) Subsection (a) of this section shall cease to apply to an
income tax preparer if, for the previous taxable year, that income
tax preparer prepared no more than twenty-five personal income tax
returns.
(d) This section first applies to personal income tax returns
required to be filed for taxable years beginning the first day of
January, two thousand six. This section does not require
electronic filing of: (1) Returns that were not required to be
filed for taxable years beginning prior to that date; (2) returns
for prior taxable years beginning prior to that date; or (3)
amended returns for any taxable year.
(e) An income tax preparer who is required to e-file under
this section but does not do so is liable for a penalty in the
amount of twenty-five dollars for each return prepared that is not
e-filed, unless the preparer shows that the failure to do so is due
to reasonable cause rather than willful neglect. For purposes of
this subsection, reasonable cause includes, but is not limited to,
a documented election by a client not to file electronically.
(f) The commissioner shall implement the provisions of this
section using any combination of notices, forms, instructions and
rules that he or she deems necessary.