READ FIRST TIME 01/23/04.   

     AN ACT Relating to tax incentives in rural counties; amending RCW 82.60.020, 82.60.040, 82.60.049, 82.60.050, and 82.60.070; adding new sections to chapter 82.04 RCW; providing an effective date; providing expiration dates; and declaring an emergency.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   A new section is added to chapter 82.04 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) Subject to the limits and provisions of this section, a credit is authorized against the tax otherwise due under this chapter for persons engaged in a rural county in the business of manufacturing computer software or programming, as those terms are defined in this section.
     (2) A person who partially or totally relocates a business from one rural county to another rural county is eligible for any new qualifying employment positions created as a result of the relocation but is not eligible to receive credit for the jobs moved from one county to the other.
     (3)(a) To qualify for the credit, the qualifying activity of the person must be conducted in a rural county and the new qualified employment position must be located in the rural county.
     (b) If an activity is conducted both from a rural county and outside of a rural county, the credit is available if at least ninety percent of the qualifying activity is conducted within a rural county. If the qualifying activity is a service taxable activity, the place where the work is performed is the place at which the activity is conducted.
     (4)(a) The credit under this section shall equal one thousand dollars for each new qualified employment position created after January 1, 2004, in an eligible area. A credit is earned for the calendar year the person is hired to fill the position. Additionally a credit is earned for each year the position is maintained over the subsequent consecutive years, up to four years. The county must meet the definition of a rural county at the time the position is filled. If the county does not have a rural county status the following year or years, the position is still eligible for the remaining years if all other conditions are met.
     (b) Participants who claimed credit under RCW 82.04.4456 for qualified employment positions created before December 31, 2003, are eligible to earn credit for each year the position is maintained over the subsequent consecutive years, for up to four years, which four years include any years claimed under RCW 82.04.4456 Those persons who did not receive a credit under RCW 82.04.4456 before December 31, 2003, are not eligible to earn credit for qualified employment positions created before December 31, 2003.
     (c) Credit is authorized for new employees hired for new qualified employment positions created on or after January 1, 2004. New qualified employment positions filled by existing employees are eligible for the credit under this section only if the position vacated by the existing employee is filled by a new hire. A business that is a sole proprietorship without any employees is equivalent to one employee position and this type of business is eligible to receive credit for one position.
     (d) If a position is filled before July 1st, the position is eligible for the full yearly credit for that calendar year. If it is filled after June 30th, the position is eligible for half of the credit for that calendar year.
     (5) No application is necessary for the tax credit. The person must keep records necessary for the department to verify eligibility under this section. This information includes information relating to description of qualifying activity conducted in the rural county and outside the rural county by the person as well as detailed records on positions and employees.
     (6) If at any time the department finds that a person is not eligible for tax credit under this section, the amount of taxes for which a credit has been claimed shall be immediately due. The department shall assess interest, but not penalties, on the taxes for which the person is not eligible. The interest shall be assessed at the rate provided for delinquent excise taxes under chapter 82.32 RCW, shall be assessed retroactively to the date the tax credit was taken, and shall accrue until the taxes for which a credit has been used are repaid.
     (7) The credit under this section may be used against any tax due under this chapter, but in no case may a credit earned during one calendar year be carried over to be credited against taxes incurred in a subsequent calendar year. A person is not eligible to receive a credit under this section if the person is receiving credit for the same position under chapter 82.62 RCW or RCW 82.04.44525 or is taking a credit under this chapter for information technology help desk services conducted from a rural county. No refunds may be granted for credits under this section.
     (8) Transfer of ownership does not affect credit eligibility. However, the successive credits are available to the successor for remaining periods in the five years only if the eligibility conditions of this section are met.
     (9) A person taking tax credits under this section shall make an annual report to the department. The report shall be in a letter form and shall include the following information: Number of positions for which credit is being claimed, type of position for which credit is being claimed, type of activity in which the person is engaged in the county, how long the person has been located in the county, and taxpayer name and registration number. The report must be filed by January 30th of each year for which credit was claimed during the previous year. Failure to file a report will not result in the loss of eligibility under this section. However, the department, through its research division, shall contact taxpayers who have not filed the report and obtain the data from the taxpayer or assist the taxpayer in the filing of the report, so that the data and information necessary to measure the program's effectiveness is maintained.
     (10) As used in this section:
     (a) "Computer software" has the meaning as defined in RCW 82.04.215 after June 30, 2004, and includes "software" as defined in RCW 82.04.215 before July 1, 2004.
     (b) "Manufacturing" means the same as "to manufacture" under RCW 82.04.120. Manufacturing includes the activities of both manufacturers and processors for hire.
     (c) "Programming" means the activities that involve the creation or modification of computer software, as that term is defined in this chapter, and that are taxable as a service under RCW 82.04.290(2) or as a retail sale under RCW 82.04.050.
     (d) "Qualifying activity" means manufacturing of computer software or programming.
     (e) "Qualified employment position" means a permanent full-time position doing programming of computer software or manufacturing of computer software. This excludes administrative, professional, service, executive, and other similar positions. If an employee is either voluntarily or involuntarily separated from employment, the employment position is considered filled on a full-time basis if the employer is either training or actively recruiting a replacement employee. Full-time means a position for at least thirty-five hours a week.
     (f) "Rural county" means the same as in RCW 82.14.370.
     (11) No credit may be taken or accrued under this section on or after January 1, 2011.
     (12) This section expires January 1, 2011.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   A new section is added to chapter 82.04 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) Subject to the limits and provisions of this section, a credit is authorized against the tax otherwise due under this chapter for persons engaged in a rural county in the business of providing information technology help desk services to third parties.
     (2) To qualify for the credit, the help desk services must be conducted from a rural county.
     (3) The amount of the tax credit for persons engaged in the activity of providing information technology help desk services in rural counties shall be equal to one hundred percent of the amount of tax due under this chapter that is attributable to providing the services from the rural county. In order to qualify for the credit under this subsection, the county must meet the definition of rural county at the time the person begins to conduct qualifying business in the county.
     (4) No application is necessary for the tax credit. The person must keep records necessary for the department to verify eligibility under this section. These records include information relating to description of activity engaged in a rural county by the person.
     (5) If at any time the department finds that a person is not eligible for tax credit under this section, the amount of taxes for which a credit has been used is immediately due. The department shall assess interest, but not penalties, on the credited taxes for which the person is not eligible. The interest shall be assessed at the rate provided for delinquent excise taxes under chapter 82.32 RCW, shall be assessed retroactively to the date the tax credit was taken, and shall accrue until the taxes for which a credit has been used are repaid.
     (6) The credit under this section may be used against any tax due under this chapter, but in no case may a credit earned during one calendar year be carried over to be credited against taxes incurred in a subsequent calendar year. No refunds may be granted for credits under this section.
     (7) Transfer of ownership does not affect credit eligibility. However, the credit is available to the successor only if the eligibility conditions of this section are met.
     (8) A person taking tax credits under this section shall make an annual report to the department. The report shall be in a letter form and shall include the following information: Type of activity in which the person is engaged in the county, number of employees in the rural county, how long the person has been located in the county, and taxpayer name and registration number. The report must be filed by January 30th of each year for which credit was claimed during the previous year. Failure to file a report will not result in the loss of eligibility under this section. However, the department, through its research division, shall contact taxpayers who have not filed the report and obtain the data from the taxpayer or assist the taxpayer in the filing of the report, so that the data and information necessary to measure the program's effectiveness is maintained.
     (9) As used in this section:
     (a) "Information technology help desk services" means the following services performed using electronic and telephonic communication:
     (i) Software and hardware maintenance;
     (ii) Software and hardware diagnostics and troubleshooting;
     (iii) Software and hardware installation;
     (iv) Software and hardware repair;
     (v) Software and hardware information and training; and
     (vi) Software and hardware upgrade.
     (b) "Rural county" means the same as in RCW 82.14.370.
     (10) This section expires January 1, 2011.

Sec. 3   RCW 82.60.020 and 1999 sp.s. c 9 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:
     Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter.
     (1) "Applicant" means a person applying for a tax deferral under this chapter.
     (2) "Department" means the department of revenue.
     (3) "Eligible area" means a ((county with fewer than one hundred persons per square mile as determined annually by the office of financial management and published by the department of revenue effective for the period July 1st through June 30th)) rural county as defined in RCW 82.14.370.
     (4)(a) "Eligible investment project" means an investment project in an eligible area as defined in subsection (3) of this section.
     (b) The ((lessor/owner)) lessor or owner of a qualified building is not eligible for a deferral unless:
     (i) The underlying ownership of the buildings, machinery, and equipment vests exclusively in the same person((,)); or ((unless))
     (ii)(A) The lessor by written contract agrees to pass the economic benefit of the deferral to the lessee ((in the form of reduced rent payments));
     (B) The lessee that receives the economic benefit of the deferral agrees in writing with the department to complete the annual survey required under RCW 82.60.070; and
     (C) The economic benefit of the deferral passed to the lessee is no less than the amount of tax deferred by the lessor and is evidenced by written documentation of any type of payment, credit, or other financial arrangement between the lessor or owner of the qualified building and the lessee.
     (c) "Eligible investment project" does not include any portion of an investment project undertaken by a light and power business as defined in RCW 82.16.010(5), other than that portion of a cogeneration project that is used to generate power for consumption within the manufacturing site of which the cogeneration project is an integral part, or investment projects which have already received deferrals under this chapter.
     (5) "Investment project" means an investment in qualified buildings or qualified machinery and equipment, including labor and services rendered in the planning, installation, and construction of the project.
     (6) "Manufacturing" means the same as defined in RCW 82.04.120. "Manufacturing" also includes computer programming, the production of computer software, and other computer-related services, and the activities performed by research and development laboratories and commercial testing laboratories.
     (7) "Person" has the meaning given in RCW 82.04.030.
     (8) "Qualified buildings" means construction of new structures, and expansion or renovation of existing structures for the purpose of increasing floor space or production capacity used for manufacturing and research and development activities, including plant offices and warehouses or other facilities for the storage of raw material or finished goods if such facilities are an essential or an integral part of a factory, mill, plant, or laboratory used for manufacturing or research and development. If a building is used partly for manufacturing or research and development and partly for other purposes, the applicable tax deferral shall be determined by apportionment of the costs of construction under rules adopted by the department.
     (9) "Qualified employment position" means a permanent full-time employee employed in the eligible investment project during the entire tax year. The term "entire tax year" means a full-time position that is filled for a period of twelve consecutive months. The term "full-time" means at least thirty-five hours a week, four hundred fifty-five hours a quarter, or one thousand eight hundred twenty hours a year.
     (10) "Qualified machinery and equipment" means all new industrial and research fixtures, equipment, and support facilities that are an integral and necessary part of a manufacturing or research and development operation. "Qualified machinery and equipment" includes: Computers; software; data processing equipment; laboratory equipment; manufacturing components such as belts, pulleys, shafts, and moving parts; molds, tools, and dies; operating structures; and all equipment used to control or operate the machinery.
     (((10))) (11) "Recipient" means a person receiving a tax deferral under this chapter.
     (((11))) (12) "Research and development" means the development, refinement, testing, marketing, and commercialization of a product, service, or process before commercial sales have begun. As used in this subsection, "commercial sales" excludes sales of prototypes or sales for market testing if the total gross receipts from such sales of the product, service, or process do not exceed one million dollars.

Sec. 4   RCW 82.60.040 and 1999 c 164 s 302 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) The department shall issue a sales and use tax deferral certificate for state and local sales and use taxes due under chapters 82.08, 82.12, and 82.14 RCW on each eligible investment project that is located in an eligible area as defined in RCW 82.60.020.
     (2) The department shall keep a running total of all deferrals granted under this chapter during each fiscal biennium.
     (3) This section expires July 1, ((2004)) 2010.

Sec. 5   RCW 82.60.049 and 2000 c 106 s 8 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) For the purposes of this section:
     (a) "Eligible area" also means a designated community empowerment zone approved under RCW ((43.63A.700)) 43.31C.020 or a county containing a community empowerment zone.
     (b) "Eligible investment project" also means an investment project in an eligible area as defined in this section.
     (((c) "Qualified employment position" means a permanent full-time employee employed in the eligible investment project during the entire year.))
     (2) In addition to the provisions of RCW 82.60.040, the department shall issue a sales and use tax deferral certificate for state and local sales and use taxes due under chapters 82.08, 82.12, and 82.14 RCW, on each eligible investment project that is located in an eligible area, if the applicant establishes that at the time the project is operationally complete:
     (a) The applicant will hire at least one qualified employment position for each seven hundred fifty thousand dollars of investment ((on)) for which a deferral is requested; and
     (b) The positions will be filled by persons who at the time of hire are residents of the community empowerment zone. As used in this subsection, "resident" means the person makes his or her home in the community empowerment zone. A mailing address alone is insufficient to establish that a person is a resident for the purposes of this section. The persons must be hired after the date the application is filed with the department.
     (3) All other provisions and eligibility requirements of this chapter apply to applicants eligible under this section.
     (4) The qualified employment position must be filled by the end of the calendar year following the year in which the project is certified as operationally complete. If a person does not meet the requirements for qualified employment positions by the end of the second calendar year following the year in which the project is certified as operationally complete, all deferred taxes are immediately due.

Sec. 6   RCW 82.60.050 and 1994 sp.s. c 1 s 7 are each amended to read as follows:
     RCW 82.60.030 and 82.60.040 shall expire July 1, ((2004)) 2010.

Sec. 7   RCW 82.60.070 and 1999 c 164 s 303 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1)(a) The legislature finds that accountability and effectiveness are important aspects of setting tax policy. In order to make policy choices regarding the best use of limited state resources the legislature needs information on how a tax incentive is used.
     (b) Each recipient of a deferral granted under this chapter after June 30, 1994, shall ((submit a report to the department on December 31st of the year in which the investment project is certified by the department as having been operationally completed, and on December 31st of each of the seven succeeding calendar years. The report shall contain information, as required by the department, from which the department may determine whether the recipient is meeting the requirements of this chapter. If the recipient fails to submit a report or submits an inadequate report, the department may declare the amount of deferred taxes outstanding to be immediately assessed and payable)) complete an annual survey. If the economic benefits of the deferral are passed to a lessee as provided in RCW 82.60.020(4), the lessee shall agree to complete the annual survey and the applicant is not required to complete the annual survey. The survey is due by March 31st of the year following the calendar year in which the investment project is certified by the department as having been operationally complete and the seven succeeding calendar years. The survey shall include the amount of tax deferred, the number of new products or research projects by general classification, and the number of trademarks, patents, and copyrights associated with activities at the investment project. The survey shall also include the following information for employment positions in Washington:
     (i) The number of total employment positions;
     (ii) Full-time, part-time, and temporary employment positions as a percent of total employment;
     (iii) The number of employment positions according to the following wage bands: Less than thirty thousand dollars; thirty thousand dollars or greater, but less than sixty thousand dollars; and sixty thousand dollars or greater. A wage band containing fewer than three individuals may be combined with another wage band; and
     (iv) The number of employment positions that have employer-provided medical, dental, and retirement benefits, by each of the wage bands.
     (c) The department may request additional information necessary to measure the results of the deferral program, to be submitted at the same time as the survey.
     (d) All information collected under this subsection, except the amount of the tax deferral taken, is deemed taxpayer information under RCW 82.32.330 and is not disclosable. Information on the amount of tax deferral taken is not subject to the confidentiality provisions of RCW 82.32.330 and may be disclosed to the public upon request.
     (e) The department shall use the information from this section to prepare summary descriptive statistics by category. No fewer than three taxpayers shall be included in any category. The department shall report these statistics to the legislature each year by September 1st.
     (f) The department shall also use the information to study the tax deferral program authorized under this chapter. The department shall report to the legislature by December 1, 2009. The report shall measure the effect of the program on job creation, the number of jobs created for residents of eligible areas, company growth, the introduction of new products, the diversification of the state's economy, growth in research and development investment, the movement of firms or the consolidation of firms' operations into the state, and such other factors as the department selects.
     (2)(a) If, on the basis of a ((report)) survey under this section or other information, the department finds that an investment project is not eligible for tax deferral under this chapter, the amount of deferred taxes outstanding for the project shall be immediately due.
     (b) If a recipient of the deferral fails to complete the annual survey required under subsection (1) of this section by the date due, twelve and one-half percent of the deferred tax shall be immediately due. If the economic benefits of the deferral are passed to a lessee as provided in RCW 82.60.020(4), the lessee shall be responsible for payment to the extent the lessee has received the economic benefit.
     (3) Notwithstanding any other subsection of this section, deferred taxes need not be repaid on machinery and equipment for lumber and wood products industries, and sales of or charges made for labor and services, of the type which qualifies for exemption under RCW 82.08.02565 or 82.12.02565 to the extent the taxes have not been repaid before July 1, 1995.
     (4) Notwithstanding any other subsection of this section, deferred taxes on the following need not be repaid:
     (a) Machinery and equipment, and sales of or charges made for labor and services, which at the time of purchase would have qualified for exemption under RCW 82.08.02565; and
     (b) Machinery and equipment which at the time of first use would have qualified for exemption under RCW 82.12.02565.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 8   This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and takes effect April 1, 2004.