H-4328.1
SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 2795
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State of Washington | 64th Legislature | 2016 Regular Session |
By House Finance (originally sponsored by Representatives Kirby, Muri, and Kilduff)
READ FIRST TIME 02/09/16.
AN ACT Relating to tax relief for the construction of adapted housing for disabled veterans; adding a new section to chapter
82.08 RCW; adding a new section to chapter
82.12 RCW; and creating new sections.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1)(a) The legislature finds that it is important to recognize the service of veterans and to acknowledge the continued sacrifice of those veterans who have service-connected physical disabilities. The legislature further finds that many disabled veterans often need customized, accessible housing in order to be self-sufficient and to maintain a high quality of life. The legislature further finds that disabled veterans have higher poverty rates than disabled nonveterans. The legislature further finds that the federal government provides a grant to assist disabled veterans with the costs of constructing, modifying, or adapting their homes, but that thousands of these dollars end up covering the sales or use tax owed on these construction projects. The legislature further finds that this results in a shift of cost to the same population of disabled veterans whose burden the federal grant program is intended to ease.
(b) It is the legislature's intent to provide specific financial relief for disabled veterans by providing a sales and use tax exemption for the construction of adapted housing for disabled veterans who have been awarded a federal grant to modify their homes.
(2)(a) This section is the tax preference performance statement for the tax preferences contained in this act. This performance statement is only intended to be used for subsequent evaluation of the tax preferences. It is not intended to create a private right of action by any party or be used to determine eligibility for preferential tax treatment.
(b) The legislature categorizes the tax preference in section 2 of this act as one intended to provide tax relief for certain businesses or individuals, as indicated in RCW
82.32.808(2)(e).
(c) To measure the effectiveness of this act in achieving the specific public policy objective described in subsection (1) of this section, the joint legislative audit and review committee must, at minimum, evaluate the following:
(i) The number of qualifying adapted housing projects, as reported to the department of revenue through the exemption application process on an annual basis; and
(ii) The total amount of adapted housing grants awarded to veterans, as reported by the United States department of veterans affairs.
(d) In addition to the data sources described under this section, the joint legislative audit and review committee may use any other data it deems necessary in performing the evaluation under this subsection.
(e) The joint legislative audit and review committee must review the tax preferences provided in this act as part of its normal review process of tax preferences.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 82.08 RCW to read as follows:
(1) The tax imposed by RCW
82.08.020 does not apply to the sales to an eligible purchaser of materials and labor with respect to the construction of adapted housing.
(2) The department must provide an exemption certificate to an eligible purchaser upon application by that person. The application must be in a form and manner prescribed by the department. The eligible purchaser must provide proof of eligibility in the form of a grant award letter from the United States department of veterans affairs.
(3) The definitions in this subsection apply throughout this section unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
(a) "Adapted housing" means a construction project that has been approved by the United States department of veterans affairs as part of the specially adapted housing grant program or the special housing adaptation grant program to modify or construct a home so that it can accommodate the needs of a disabled or severely disabled veteran.
(b) "Eligible purchaser" means a disabled or severely disabled veteran who has received either a specially adapted housing grant or a special housing adaptation grant from the United States department of veterans affairs.
(c) "Special housing adaptation" has the same meaning, eligibility requirements, and restrictions as "special home adaptation grant" in 38 C.F.R. 3.809a, as of July 1, 2016.
(d) "Specially adapted housing" has the same meaning, eligibility requirements, and restrictions as in 38 C.F.R. 3.809, as of July 1, 2016.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 82.12 RCW to read as follows:
(1) The tax imposed by RCW
82.12.020 does not apply to the use of materials and labor rendered with respect to the construction of adapted housing.
(2) The exemption provided in this section only applies if the sale of the materials and labor rendered with respect to the construction of the adapted housing was exempt from sales tax under section 2 of this act.
(3) For purposes of this section, "adapted housing" has the same meaning as provided in section 2 of this act.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. This act applies to sales or uses on or after July 1, 2016.
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