Read 1st time January 24, 2000, and 1000 copies ordered printed.
ANNE C. WALKER, Chief Clerk
AN ACT
To repeal section 144.440, RSMo 1994, and sections 144.010 and 144.020, RSMo Supp. 1999, relating to sales taxation, and to enact in lieu thereof three new sections relating to the same subject with an effective date.
Section A. Section 144.440, RSMo 1994, and sections 144.010 and 144.020, RSMo Supp. 1999, are repealed and three new sections enacted in lieu thereof, to be known as sections 144.010, 144.020 and 144.440, to read as follows:
144.010. 1. The following words, terms, and phrases when used in sections 144.010 to 144.525 have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except when the context indicates a different meaning:
(1) "Admission" includes seats and tables, reserved or otherwise, and other similar accommodations and charges made therefor and amount paid for admission, exclusive of any admission tax imposed by the federal government or by sections 144.010 to 144.525;
(2) "Business" includes any activity engaged in by any person, or caused to be engaged in by [him] any person, with the object of gain, benefit or advantage, either direct or indirect, and the classification of which business is of such character as to be subject to the terms of sections 144.010 to 144.525. The isolated or occasional sale of tangible personal property, a motor vehicle service, substance, or thing, by a person not engaged in such business, does not constitute engaging in business within the meaning of sections 144.010 to 144.525 unless the total amount of the gross receipts from such sales, exclusive of receipts from the sale of tangible personal property or of a motor vehicle by persons which property is sold in the course of the partial or complete liquidation of a household, farm or nonbusiness enterprise, exceeds three thousand dollars in any calendar year. The provisions of this subdivision shall not be construed to make any sale of property which is exempt from sales tax or use tax on June 1, 1977, subject to that tax thereafter;
(3) "Gross receipts", except as provided in section 144.012, means the total amount of the sale price of the sales at retail including any services other than charges incident to the extension of credit that are a part of such sales made by the businesses herein referred to, capable of being valued in money, whether received in money or otherwise; except that, the term "gross receipts" shall not include the sale price of property returned by customers when the full sale price thereof is refunded either in cash or by credit. In determining any tax due [under] pursuant to sections 144.010 to 144.525 on the gross receipts, charges incident to the extension of credit shall be specifically exempted. For the purposes of sections 144.010 to 144.525 the total amount of the sale price above mentioned shall be deemed to be the amount received. It shall also include the lease or rental consideration where the right to continuous possession or use of any article of tangible personal property or a motor vehicle is granted under a lease or contract and such transfer of possession would be taxable if outright sale were made and, in such cases, the same shall be taxable as if outright sale were made and considered as a sale of such article, and the tax shall be computed and paid by the lessee upon the rentals paid;
(4) "Livestock", cattle, calves, sheep, swine, ratite birds, including but not limited to, ostrich and emu, aquatic products as defined in section 277.024, RSMo, elk documented as obtained from a legal source and not from the wild, goats, horses, other equine, or rabbits raised in confinement for human consumption;
(5) "Motor vehicle leasing company" shall be a company obtaining a permit from the director of revenue to operate as a motor vehicle leasing company. Not all persons renting or leasing trailers or motor vehicles need to obtain such a permit; however, no person failing to obtain such a permit may avail itself of the optional tax provisions of subsection 5 of section 144.070, as hereinafter provided;
(6) "Person" includes any individual, firm, copartnership, joint adventure, association, corporation, municipal or private, and whether organized for profit or not, state, county, political subdivision, state department, commission, board, bureau or agency, except the state transportation department, estate, trust, business trust, receiver or trustee appointed by the state or federal court, syndicate, or any other group or combination acting as a unit, and the plural as well as the singular number;
(7) "Purchaser" means a person who purchases tangible personal property or a motor vehicle or to whom are rendered services, receipts from which are taxable [under] pursuant to sections 144.010 to 144.525;
(8) "Research or experimentation activities", are the development of an experimental or pilot model, plant process, formula, invention or similar property, and the improvement of existing property of such type. Research or experimentation activities do not include activities such as ordinary testing or inspection of materials or products for quality control, efficiency surveys, advertising promotions or research in connection with literary, historical or similar projects;
(9) "Sale" or "sales" includes installment and credit sales, and the exchange of properties as well as the sale thereof for money, every closed transaction constituting a sale, and means any transfer, exchange or barter, conditional or otherwise, in any manner or by any means whatsoever, of tangible personal property or a motor vehicle for valuable consideration and the rendering, furnishing or selling for a valuable consideration any of the substances, things and services herein designated and defined as taxable [under the terms of] pursuant to sections 144.010 to 144.525;
(10) "Sale at retail" means any transfer made by any person engaged in business as defined herein of the ownership of, or title to, tangible personal property or a motor vehicle to the purchaser, for use or consumption and not for resale in any form as tangible personal property or as a motor vehicle, for a valuable consideration; except that, for the purposes of sections 144.010 to 144.525 and the tax imposed thereby: (i) purchases of tangible personal property or a motor vehicle made by duly licensed physicians, dentists, optometrists and veterinarians and used in the practice of their professions shall be deemed to be purchases for use or consumption and not for resale; and (ii) the selling of computer printouts, computer output or microfilm or microfiche and computer-assisted photo compositions to a purchaser to enable the purchaser to obtain for his or her own use the desired information contained in such computer printouts, computer output on microfilm or microfiche and computer-assisted photo compositions shall be considered as the sale of a service and not as the sale of tangible personal property. Where necessary to conform to the context of sections 144.010 to 144.525 and the tax imposed thereby, the term "sale at retail" shall be construed to embrace:
(a) Sales of admission tickets, cash admissions, charges and fees to or in places of amusement, entertainment and recreation, games and athletic events;
(b) Sales of electricity, electrical current, water and gas, natural or artificial, to domestic, commercial or industrial consumers;
(c) Sales of local and long distance telecommunications service to telecommunications subscribers and to others through equipment of telecommunications subscribers for the transmission of messages and conversations, and the sale, rental or leasing of all equipment or services pertaining or incidental thereto;
(d) Sales of service for transmission of messages by telegraph companies;
(e) Sales or charges for all rooms, meals and drinks furnished at any hotel, motel, tavern, inn, restaurant, eating house, drugstore, dining car, tourist camp, tourist cabin, or other place in which rooms, meals or drinks are regularly served to the public;
(f) Sales of tickets by every person operating a railroad, sleeping car, dining car, express car, boat, airplane, and such buses and trucks as are licensed by the division of motor carrier and railroad safety of the department of economic development of Missouri, engaged in the transportation of persons for hire;
(11) "Seller" means a person selling or furnishing tangible personal property or a motor vehicle or rendering services, on the receipts from which a tax is imposed pursuant to section 144.020;
(12) The noun "tax" means either the tax payable by the purchaser of a commodity or service subject to tax, or the aggregate amount of taxes due from the vendor of such commodities or services during the period for which he or she is required to report his or her collections, as the context may require;
(13) "Telecommunications service", for the purpose of chapter 144, the transmission of information by wire, radio, optical cable, coaxial cable, electronic impulses, or other similar means. As used in this definition, "information" means knowledge or intelligence represented by any form of writing, signs, signals, pictures, sounds, or any other symbols. Telecommunications service does not include the following if such services are separately stated on the customer's bill:
(a) Access to the Internet, access to interactive computer services or electronic publishing services, except the amount paid for the telecommunications service used to provide such access;
(b) Answering services and one-way paging services;
(c) Private mobile radio services which are not two-way commercial mobile radio services such as wireless telephone, personal communications services or enhanced specialized mobile radio services as defined pursuant to federal law; or
(d) Cable or satellite television or music services; and
(14) "Product which is intended to be sold ultimately for final use or consumption" means tangible personal property, or any service that is subject to state or local sales or use taxes, or any tax that is substantially equivalent thereto, in this state or any other state.
2. For purposes of the taxes imposed [under] pursuant to sections 144.010 to 144.525, and any other provisions of law pertaining to sales or use taxes which incorporate the provisions of sections 144.010 to 144.525 by reference, the term "manufactured homes" shall have the same meaning given it in section 700.010, RSMo.
3. Sections 144.010 to 144.525 may be known and quoted as the "Sales Tax Law".
144.020. 1. A tax is hereby levied and imposed upon all sellers for the privilege of engaging in the business of selling tangible personal property or a motor vehicle or rendering taxable service at retail in this state. The rate of tax shall be as follows:
(1) Except as provided in subdivision (9) of this subsection, upon every retail sale in this state of tangible personal property, a tax equivalent to four percent of the purchase price paid or charged, or in case such sale involves the exchange of property, a tax equivalent to four percent of the consideration paid or charged, including the fair market value of the property exchanged at the time and place of the exchange, except as otherwise provided in section 144.025;
(2) A tax equivalent to four percent of the amount paid for admission and seating accommodations, or fees paid to, or in any place of amusement, entertainment or recreation, games and athletic events;
(3) A tax equivalent to four percent of the basic rate paid or charged on all sales of electricity or electrical current, water and gas, natural or artificial, to domestic, commercial or industrial consumers;
(4) A tax equivalent to four percent on the basic rate paid or charged on all sales of local and long distance telecommunications service to telecommunications subscribers and to others through equipment of telecommunications subscribers for the transmission of messages and conversations and upon the sale, rental or leasing of all equipment or services pertaining or incidental thereto; except that, the payment made by telecommunications subscribers or others, pursuant to section 144.060, and any amounts paid for access to the Internet or interactive computer services shall not be considered as amounts paid for telecommunications services;
(5) A tax equivalent to four percent of the basic rate paid or charged for all sales of services for transmission of messages of telegraph companies;
(6) A tax equivalent to four percent on the amount of sales or charges for all rooms, meals and drinks furnished at any hotel, motel, tavern, inn, restaurant, eating house, drugstore, dining car, tourist cabin, tourist camp or other place in which rooms, meals or drinks are regularly served to the public;
(7) A tax equivalent to four percent of the amount paid or charged for intrastate tickets by every person operating a railroad, sleeping car, dining car, express car, boat, airplane and such buses and trucks as are licensed by the division of motor carrier and railroad safety of the department of economic development of Missouri, engaged in the transportation of persons for hire;
(8) Except as provided in subdivision (9) of this subsection, a tax equivalent to four percent of the amount paid or charged for rental or lease of tangible personal property, provided that if the lessor or renter of any tangible personal property had previously purchased the property under the conditions of "sale at retail" as defined in subdivision (8) of section 144.010 or leased or rented the property and the tax was paid at the time of purchase, lease or rental, the lessor, sublessor, renter or subrenter shall not apply or collect the tax on the subsequent lease, sublease, rental or subrental receipts from that property. The purchase or use of [motor vehicles,] trailers, boats, and outboard motors shall be taxed and the tax paid as provided in sections 144.070 and 144.440. No tax shall be collected on the rental or lease of [motor vehicles,] trailers, boats, and outboard motors, except as provided in sections 144.070 and 144.440. In no event shall the rental or lease of boats and outboard motors be considered a sale, charge, or fee to, for or in places of amusement, entertainment or recreation nor shall any such rental or lease be subject to any tax imposed to, for, or in such places of amusement, entertainment or recreation. Rental and leased boats or outboard motors shall be taxed [under] pursuant to the provisions of the sales tax laws as provided [under] by such laws for motor vehicles and trailers. Tangible personal property which is exempt from the sales or use tax [under] pursuant to section 144.030 upon a sale thereof is likewise exempt from the sales or use tax upon the lease or rental thereof[.];
(9) Upon every retail sale in this state of a motor vehicle, a tax equivalent to two percent of the purchase price paid or charged. A tax equivalent to two percent of the amount paid or charged for rental or lease of a motor vehicle, provided that if the lessor or renter of any motor vehicle had previously purchased the vehicle under the conditions of "sale at retail" as defined in subdivision (8) of section 144.010 or leased or rented the vehicle and the tax was paid at the time of purchase, lease or rental, the lessor, sublessor, renter or subrenter shall not apply or collect the tax on the subsequent lease, sublease, rental or subrental receipts from that vehicle. The purchase or use of motor vehicles shall be taxed and the tax paid as provided in sections 144.070 and 144.440. No tax shall be collected on the rental or lease of motor vehicles except as provided in sections 144.070 and 144.440. Motor vehicles which are exempt from the sales or use tax pursuant to section 144.030 upon a sale thereof is likewise exempt from the sales or use tax upon the lease or rental thereof.
2. All tickets sold which are sold [under] pursuant to the provisions of sections 144.010 to 144.525 which are subject to the sales tax shall have printed, stamped or otherwise endorsed thereon, the words "This ticket is subject to a sales tax.".
144.440. 1. In addition to all other taxes now or hereafter levied and imposed upon every person for the privilege of using the highways or waterways of this state, there is hereby levied and imposed a tax equivalent to four percent of the purchase price, as defined in section 144.070, which is paid or charged on new and used [motor vehicles,] trailers, boats, and outboard motors, and a tax equivalent to two percent of the purchase price, as defined in section 144.070, which is paid or charged on new and used motor vehicles, when such trailers, boats, outboard motors and motor vehicles are purchased or acquired for use on the highways or waters of this state [which] and are required to be registered [under] pursuant to the laws of the state of Missouri.
2. At the time the owner of any such motor vehicle, trailer, boat, or outboard motor makes application to the director of revenue for an official certificate of title and the registration of the same as otherwise provided by law, [he] the owner shall present to the director of revenue evidence satisfactory to the director showing the purchase price paid by or charged to the applicant in the acquisition of the motor vehicle, trailer, boat, or outboard motor, or that the motor vehicle, trailer, boat, or outboard motor is not subject to the tax herein provided and, if the motor vehicle, trailer, boat, or outboard motor is subject to the tax herein provided, the applicant shall pay or cause to be paid to the director of revenue the tax provided herein.
3. In the event that the purchase price is unknown or undisclosed, or that the evidence thereof is not satisfactory to the director of revenue, the same shall be fixed by appraisement by the director.
4. No certificate of title shall be issued for such motor vehicle, trailer, boat, or outboard motor unless the tax for the privilege of using the highways or waters of this state has been paid or the vehicle, trailer, boat, or outboard motor is registered [under] pursuant to the provisions of subsection 5 of this section.
5. The owner of any motor vehicle, trailer, boat, or outboard motor which is to be used exclusively for rental or lease purposes may pay the tax due thereon required in section 144.020 at the time of registration or in lieu thereof may pay a use tax as provided in sections 144.010, 144.020, 144.070 and 144.440. A use tax shall be charged and paid on the amount charged for each rental or lease agreement while the motor vehicle, trailer, boat, or outboard motor is domiciled in the state. If the owner elects to pay upon each rental or lease, [he] the owner shall make an affidavit to that effect in such form as the director of revenue shall require and shall remit the tax due at such times as the director of revenue shall require.
6. In the event that any leasing company which rents or leases motor vehicles, trailers, boats, or outboard motors elects to collect a use tax, all of its lease receipt would be subject to the use tax, regardless of whether or not the leasing company previously paid a sales tax when the vehicle, trailer, boat, or outboard motor was originally purchased.
7. The provisions of this section, and the tax imposed by this section, shall not apply to manufactured homes.
Section B. Section A of this act shall become effective on January 1, 2001.
Missouri House of Representatives