CERTIFICATION OF ENROLLMENT

 

                   SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 3096

 

 

 

 

 

 

                        55th Legislature

                      1998 Regular Session

Passed by the House March 9, 1998 

Yeas 83   Nays 12

 

 

 

Speaker of the

      House of Representatives

 

Passed by the Senate March 3, 1998

  Yeas 44   Nays 5

             CERTIFICATE

 

I, Timothy A. Martin, Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives of the State of Washington, do hereby certify that the attached is SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 3096  as passed by the House of Representatives and the Senate on the dates hereon set forth.

 

 

 

President of the Senate

                          Chief Clerk

 

 

Approved Place Style On Codes above, and Style Off Codes below.    

                                FILED

          

 

 

Governor of the State of Washington

                   Secretary of State

                  State of Washington


          _______________________________________________

 

                    SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 3096

          _______________________________________________

 

                     AS AMENDED BY THE SENATE

 

             Passed Legislature - 1998 Regular Session

 

State of Washington      55th Legislature     1998 Regular Session

 

By House Committee on Financial Institutions & Insurance (originally sponsored by Representatives Zellinsky and L. Thomas)

 

Read first time 02/02/98.  Referred to Committee on .

Declaring the state's preemption of excise or privilege taxes on health care services.  


    AN ACT Relating to declaring the state's preemption of the field of excise or privilege taxes on health maintenance organizations and health care service contractors; and amending RCW 48.14.0201.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

 

    Sec. 1.  RCW 48.14.0201 and 1997 c 154 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

    (1) As used in this section, "taxpayer" means a health maintenance organization, as defined in RCW 48.46.020, or a health care service contractor, as defined in RCW 48.44.010.

    (2) Each taxpayer shall pay a tax on or before the first day of March of each year to the state treasurer through the insurance commissioner's office.  The tax shall be equal to the total amount of all premiums and prepayments for health care services received by the taxpayer during the preceding calendar year multiplied by the rate of two percent.

    (3) Taxpayers shall prepay their tax obligations under this section.  The minimum amount of the prepayments shall be percentages of the taxpayer's tax obligation for the preceding calendar year recomputed using the rate in effect for the current year.  For the prepayment of taxes due during the first calendar year, the minimum amount of the prepayments shall be percentages of the taxpayer's tax obligation that would have been due had the tax been in effect during the previous calendar year.  The tax prepayments shall be paid to the state treasurer through the commissioner's office by the due dates and in the following amounts:

    (a) On or before June 15, forty-five percent;

    (b) On or before September 15, twenty-five percent;

    (c) On or before December 15, twenty-five percent.

    (4) For good cause demonstrated in writing, the commissioner may approve an amount smaller than the preceding calendar year's tax obligation as recomputed for calculating the health maintenance organization's, health care service contractor's, or certified health plan's prepayment obligations for the current tax year.

    (5) Moneys collected under this section shall be deposited in the general fund through March 31, 1996, and in the health services account under RCW 43.72.900 after March 31, 1996.

    (6) The taxes imposed in this section do not apply to:

    (a) Amounts received by any taxpayer from the United States or any instrumentality thereof as prepayments for health care services provided under Title XVIII (medicare) of the federal social security act.

    (b) Amounts received by any health care service contractor, as defined in RCW 48.44.010, as prepayments for health care services included within the definition of practice of dentistry under RCW 18.32.020.

    (7) Beginning January 1, 2000, the state does hereby preempt the field of imposing excise or privilege taxes upon taxpayers and no county, city, town, or other municipal subdivision shall have the right to impose any such taxes upon such taxpayers.  This subsection shall be limited to premiums and payments for health benefit plans offered by health care service contractors under chapter 48.44 RCW and health maintenance organizations under chapter 48.46 RCW.  The preemption authorized by this subsection shall not impair the ability of a county, city, town, or other municipal subdivision to impose excise or privilege taxes upon the health care services directly delivered by the employees of a health maintenance organization under chapter 48.46 RCW.

 


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