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2016 SESSION

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Senate Committee on Finance

Co-Chair: Thomas K. Norment, Jr. - Co-Chair: Emmett W. Hanger, Jr.

Clerk: Patty Lung
Staff: Lisa Wallmeyer, Nicole Brenner
Date of Meeting: February 16, 2016
Time and Place: 9:00 a.m. - Senate Room B

H.B. 15

Patron: Ware

Personal property tax; classifications. Provides that if an item of tangible personal property falls within multiple classifications for local taxation, the rate of taxation is the lowest rate assigned to such classifications. Current law provides that such personal property tax treatment applies only to motor vehicles and to computer equipment and peripherals used in a data center.

H.B. 23

Patron: Farrell

Fuels tax refunds. Provides refunds of fuels taxes for fuels used in highway vehicles owned or operated by or under a contract with any § 501(c)(3) entity organized with a principal purpose of providing hunger relief services or food to the needy.

H.B. 80

Patron: Byron

Property certified as tax exempt; effective date of tax exemption. Provides that once the required certification for tax exemption is made by a state or local authority for pollution control equipment and other real and personal property that is required to be certified in order to be exempt, such property will be deemed to be exempt as of the date the property is placed in service. Current law requires that certain pollution control, recycling, and solar energy real and personal property placed in service must be certified as being used primarily for the purpose of abating or preventing pollution of the atmosphere or waters of the Commonwealth in order to be exempt from local property taxes but does not specify the beginning date for the exemption.

H.B. 186

Patron: Yancey

Port-related tax credits; expiration date. Extends the expiration date of the international trade facility, barge and rail usage, and Virginia port volume increase tax credits from January 1, 2017, to January 1, 2020.

H.B. 315

Patron: Orrock

Conservation police officers; retirement. Provides that any conservation police officer who (i) has at least 20 years of service as a conservation police officer, (ii) is a full-time sworn member of the enforcement division of the Department of Game and Inland fisheries prior to January 1, 2016, and (iii) is transitioned to a civilian position on January 1, 2016, by the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries shall be considered a retired law-enforcement officer for the purposes of (i) obtaining a photo identification card, (ii) being excluded from the prohibition on carrying concealed weapons and fee for a concealed handgun permit, and (iii) purchasing a service weapon.

H.B. 477

Patron: Cox

Bonds; veterans care centers. Authorizes the Virginia Public Building Authority to issue bonds in the amount of $29.3 million plus financing costs to construct veterans care centers in Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads.

H.B. 568

Patron: Cox

Virginia Guaranteed Assistance Program; grants. Makes several changes to the Virginia Guaranteed Assistance Program (Program), including adding requirements that (i) each student eligible for the Program receive a grant from the institution's appropriations for undergraduate student financial assistance before grants are awarded to students with equivalent remaining need, (ii) each eligible student receive a grant in an amount greater than other grants awarded to students with equivalent remaining need, (iii) each eligible student receive a Program grant in an amount greater than the grant of each eligible student with equivalent remaining need in the next-lowest class level, and (iv) each Program grant be determined by a proportionate award schedule adopted by each institution and vary according to each student's remaining need and the total of tuition, fees, and other necessary charges, including books.

H.B. 590

Patron: Poindexter

Research and development expenses tax credit; reporting requirement. Eliminates the requirement that the Virginia Economic Development Partnership include in its Annual Report on Business Incentives information regarding the number of applicants and tax credits approved for the research and development expenses tax credit.

H.B. 596

Patron: Simon

Recordation tax; exemption. Exempts from recordation tax (i) certain deeds of partition and (ii) deeds transferring property pursuant to a divorce decree. Under current law, the tax on such deeds is $0.50.

H.B. 1017

Patron: Massie

Education improvement scholarships tax credit; reporting and other requirements. Modifies the tax credit by (i) making the current required report of donations qualifying for the credit and scholarships awarded from such donations as of June 30, (ii) increasing from 20 to 40 the number of days by which a scholarship foundation is required to return a preauthorization notice to the Department of Education to certify that a donor has completed his donation to the foundation, (iii) increasing from 14 to 21 the number of days by which a scholarship foundation must convert a donation of marketable securities into cash, and (iv) making clarifying and technical amendments.

Under current law, a scholarship foundation must provide a report each year by September 30 to the Department of Education showing the total number and value of donations it received in its most recent fiscal year ended. Under the bill, every scholarship foundation will report on donations received in the 12-month period ending on June 30 of each year. This change will enable the Department of Education to determine whether a scholarship foundation has complied with the statutory requirement to disburse at least 90 percent of its tax-credit-derived funds received during each 12-month period ending on June 30 by the following June 30 for educational scholarships.

The bill clarifies that the annual audit, review, or compilation required of a scholarship foundation receiving tax-credit-derived funds is for the foundation's most recent fiscal year ended. Finally, the bill eliminates (a) redundant reporting requirements relating to the total number and dollar value of donations received by a foundation and the total number and dollar amount of educational scholarships awarded by a foundation and (b) the requirement that a scholarship foundation report the percentage of first-time recipients to whom educational scholarships are awarded.

H.B. 1170

Patron: Fowler

Real property tax; boards of equalization. Changes the maximum number of members of a board of equalization from five to the greater of five or the number of election districts in the locality.

S.B. 35

Patron: Carrico

Vehicle registration fees; funds for Department of State Police. Raises the vehicle registration fee an additional $1.25 per year on each July 1 from 2016 through 2025 and allocates the funds to the Department of State Police.

S.B. 416

Patron: Vogel

Limited Residential Lodging Act; penalty. Establishes the Limited Residential Lodging Act (the Act), which allows property owners to rent out their homes or portions thereof for charge for periods of less than 30 consecutive days or do so through a hosting platform, under certain circumstances. The hosting platform may register with the Department of Taxation, in which case the hosting platform is responsible for the collection and remittance of all applicable taxes on behalf of the property owner. The bill defines "limited residential lodging," "booking transaction," and "hosting platform" and provides for penalties for violations of the Act.

S.B. 419

Patron: Vogel

Operation of a child welfare agency without a license; negligence resulting in death of or injury to a child; penalty. Provides that in any case in which a person operates or engages in the conduct of a child welfare agency without first obtaining a license, and a child under the care or supervision of such child welfare agency suffers death or serious bodily injury as a result of the child care provider's negligent operation of such child welfare agency, such person is guilty of a Class 4 felony.

S.B. 731

Patrons: Hanger, Norment

Capital outlay funding. Authorizes the issuance of bonds by the Virginia Public Building Authority and the Virginia College Building Authority for certain projects and programs.

S.B. 751

Patron: DeSteph

Limited Residential Lodging and Short-term Rental Lodging Act; penalty. Establishes the Limited Residential Lodging and Short-term Rental Lodging Act (the Act), which allows (i) property owners to rent out their homes or portions thereof for a charge for periods of less than 30 consecutive days or (ii) short-term rentals of residential or commercial units; both of which may be transacted through a hosting platform, under certain circumstances. The bill requires an operator of either limited residential lodging or short-term rental lodging to register with the Department of Taxation. The hosting platform may register with the Department of Taxation, in which case the hosting platform is responsible for the collection and remittance of all applicable taxes on behalf of the property owner. The bill provides for the amount of license tax on such operators. The bill provides that any local ordinance requiring the use of the special exception, special use, or conditional use permit for short-term rental lodging contain specific provisions relating to noise, trash or recycling collection, and the posting of emergency information. The bill defines "limited residential lodging," "booking transaction," "hosting platform," "short-term lodger," short-term lodging operator," and "short-term rental lodging," and provides for penalties for violations of the Act.