H. B. 2765
(By Mr. Speaker, (Mr. Thompson) and Delegate Armstead)
[By Request of the Executive]
[Introduced February 23, 2009; referred to the
Committee on Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §11-21-9 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to updating the meaning of "federal
adjusted gross income" and certain other terms in the West
Virginia Personal Income Tax Act in order for the definitions
to conform with the Internal Revenue Code's definitions.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §11-21-9 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, 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 has 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 means the provisions of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, and any other provisions of the laws of the United
States that relate to the determination of income for federal
income tax purposes. All amendments made to the laws of the United
States after
two thousand six December 31, 2007, but prior to
the
fourteenth day of February, two thousand eight February 18, 2009,
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 the changes are retroactive or
prospective, but no amendment to the laws of the United States made
on or after
the fourteenth day of February, two thousand eight
February 18, 2009, 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
two thousand eight 2009 are retroactive to the extent
allowable under federal income tax law. With respect to taxable
years that began prior to
two thousand nine January 1, 2010, the
law in effect for each of those years shall be fully preserved as
to that year, except as provided in this section.
(e) For purposes of the refundable credit allowed to a low
income senior citizen for property tax paid on his or her homestead
in this state, the term "laws of the United States" as used in
subsection (a) of this section means and includes the term "low
income" as defined in subsection (b), section twenty-one of this
article and as reflected in the poverty guidelines updated
periodically in the federal register by the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services under the authority of 42 U.S.C.
§9902(2).
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to update the meaning of
"federal adjusted gross income" and certain other terms used but
not defined in the West Virginia Personal Income Tax Act by
bringing them into conformity with their definitions in the
Internal Revenue Code.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.