HOUSE BILL No. 4638 May 5, 1999, Introduced by Rep. Shulman and referred to the Committee on Tax Policy. A bill to amend 1893 PA 206, entitled "The general property tax act," by amending section 9 (MCL 211.9), as amended by 1996 PA 582. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT: 1 Sec. 9. The following personal property is exempt from 2 taxation: 3 (a) The personal property of charitable, educational, and 4 scientific institutions incorporated under the laws of this 5 state. This exemption does not apply to secret or fraternal 6 societies, but the personal property of all charitable homes of 7theSECRET OR FRATERNAL societies and OF nonprofit corporations 8 that own and operate facilities for the aged and chronically ill 9 in which the net income from the operation of the corporations 10 does not inure to the benefit of a person other than the 11 residents is exempt. 00762'99 FDD 2 1 (b) The property of all library associations, circulating 2 libraries, libraries of reference, and reading rooms owned or 3 supported by the public and not used for gain. 4 (c) The property of posts of the grand army of the republic, 5 sons of veterans' unions, and of the women's relief corps con- 6 nected with them, of young men's Christian associations, women's 7 Christian temperance union associations, young people's Christian 8 unions, a boy or girl scout or camp fire girls organization, 4-H 9 clubs, and other similar associations. 10 (d) Pensions receivable from the United States. 11 (e) The property of Indians who are not citizens. 12 (f) The personal property owned and used by a householder 13 such as customary furniture, fixtures, provisions, fuel, and 14 other similar equipment,and thewearing apparel including per- 15 sonal jewelry, family pictures, school books, library books of 16 reference, and allied items. Personal property is not exempt 17 under this subdivision if it is used to produce income, if it is 18 held for speculative investment, or if it constitutes an inven- 19 tory of goods for sale in the regular course of trade. 20 (g) Household furnishings, provisions, and fuelto the21state equalized valueof not more than $5,000.00 IN TAXABLE 22 VALUE, of each social or professional fraternity, sorority, and 23 student cooperative house recognized by the educational institu- 24 tion at which it is located. 25 (h) The working tools of a mechanicto the state equalized26valueof not more than $500.00 IN TAXABLE VALUE. "Mechanic", as 27 used in this subdivision, means a person skilled in a trade 00762'99 3 1 pertaining to a craft or in the construction or repair of 2 machinery if the person's employment by others is dependent on 3 his or her furnishing the tools. 4 (i) Fire engines and other implements used in extinguishing 5 fires owned or used by an organized or independent fire company. 6 (j) Property actuallybeingused in agricultural opera- 7 tions andthefarm implements held for sale or resale by retail 8 servicing dealers for use in agricultural production. As used in 9 this subdivision, "agricultural operations" means farming in all 10 its branches, including cultivation of the soil, growing and har- 11 vesting of an agricultural, horticultural, or floricultural com- 12 modity, dairying, raising of livestock, bees, fur-bearing ani- 13 mals, or poultry, turf and tree farming, raising and harvesting 14 of fish, and any practices performed by a farmer or on a farm as 15 an incident to, or in conjunction with, farming operations, but 16 excluding retail sales and food processing operations. Property 17 used in agricultural operations includes machinery used to pre- 18 pare the crop for market operated incidental to a farming opera- 19 tion that does not substantially alter the form, shape, or sub- 20 stance of the crop and is limited to cleaning, cooling, washing, 21 pitting, grading, sizing, sorting, drying, bagging, boxing, crat- 22 ing, and handling if not less than 33% of the volume of the crops 23 processed in the year ending on the applicable tax day or in at 24 least 3 of the immediately preceding 5 years were grown by the 25 farmer in Michigan who is the owner or user of the crop process- 26 ing machinery. 00762'99 4 1 (k) Personal propertyto the state equalized valueofnot2more than $500.00 used by a householder in the operation ofa 3 business.in the householder's dwelling or at 1 other location4in the city, township, or village where the householder resides.5 AS USED IN THIS SUBDIVISION, "BUSINESS" MEANS A SOLE PROPRIETOR- 6 SHIP, PARTNERSHIP, LIMITED PARTNERSHIP, LIMITED LIABILITY PART- 7 NERSHIP, CORPORATION, LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY, OR OTHER LEGAL 8 ENTITY OPERATED FOR PROFIT. 9 (l) The products, materials, or goods processed or otherwise 10 and in whatever form, but expressly excepting alcoholic bever- 11 ages, located in a public warehouse, United States customs port 12 of entry bonded warehouse, dock, or port facility on December 31 13 of each year, if those products, materials, or goods are desig- 14 nated as in transit to destinationsout ofOUTSIDE THIS state 15 pursuant to the published tariffs of a railroad or common carrier 16 bythefilingofthe freight bill covering the products, 17 materials, or goods with the agency designated by the tariffs, 18so as to entitleENTITLING the shipper to transportation rate 19 privileges. Products in a United States customs port of entry 20 bonded warehouse that arrived from another state or a foreign 21 country, whether awaiting shipment to another state or to a final 22 destination within this state, are considered to be in transit 23 and temporarily at rest, and not subject to personal property 24 taxation. To obtain AN exemption FOR PRODUCTS, MATERIALS, OR 25 GOODS UNDER THIS SUBDIVISION, the owner shall file a sworn state- 26 ment with, and in the form required by, the assessing officer of 27 the tax district in which the warehouse, dock, or port facility 00762'99 5 1 is located, at a time between the tax day, December 31, and 2 beforeclosing ofTHE ASSESSING OFFICER CLOSES the assessment 3 rollsby the assessing officer,describing the products, mate- 4 rials, or goods, and reporting their cost and value as of 5 December 31 of each year. The status of persons,and pro- 6 ducts, materials, or goods for which AN exemption is requested 7shall beIS determined as of December 31, whichshall beIS 8 the tax day.The assessment on the basis of average monthly9inventory does not apply in valuing products, materials, or goods10for which exemption is requested.Any property located in a 11 public warehouse, dock, or port facility on December 31 of each 12 year, whichTHAT is exempt from taxation under this subdivi- 13 sion butwhichTHAT is not shipped outsidetheTHIS state 14 pursuant to the particular tariff under which the transportation 15 rate privilege was established,shall be assessed upon the 16nextIMMEDIATELY succeeding or a subsequent assessment roll by 17 the assessing officer and taxed at the same rate of taxation as 18 other taxablepropertiesPROPERTY for the year or years for 19 which the property was exempted,to the owner at the time of 20 the omission,unless the owner or person entitled to posses- 21 sion of the products, materials, or goods is a resident of, or 22 authorized to do business in, this state and files with the 23 assessing officer, with whom statements of taxable property are 24 required to be filed, a statement under oath that the products, 25 materials, or goods are not for sale or use in this state and 26 will be shipped to a point or points outside this state. If a 27 person, firm, or corporation claims exemption bythefiling 00762'99 6 1ofa sworn statement, the person, firm, or corporation shall 2 append to the statement of taxable property required to be filed 3 in thenextIMMEDIATELY SUCCEEDING year or, if a statement of 4 taxable property is not filed for thenextIMMEDIATELY 5 SUCCEEDING year, TO a sworn statement FILED on a form required by 6 the assessing officer,shall be filed showinga complete list 7 of the property for which the exemption was claimed with a state- 8 ment of the manner of shipment and of the point or points to 9 which the products, materials, or goods were shipped from the 10 public warehouse, dock, or port facility.andTHE ASSESSING 11 OFFICER SHALL ASSESS the products, materials, or goods not 12 shipped to a point or points outside this stateshall be13assessedupon thenextIMMEDIATELY succeeding assessment roll 14,or on a subsequent assessment rollby the assessing officer15 and THE PRODUCTS, MATERIALS, OR GOODS SHALL BE taxed at the same 16 rate of taxation as other taxablepropertiesPROPERTY for the 17 year or years for which the property was exempted,to the 18 owner at the time of the omission. The records, accounts, and 19 books of warehouses, docks, or port facilities, individuals, 20 partnerships, corporations, owners, or those in possession of 21 tangible personal property shall be open to and available for 22 inspection, examination, or auditing by assessing officers. A 23 warehouse, dock,orport facility, individual, partnership, 24 corporation, owner, or person in possession of tangible personal 25 property shall report within 90 days after shipment of products, 26 materials, or goods in transit, for which AN exemption under this 27 section was claimed or granted, the destination of shipments or 00762'99 7 1 parts of shipments and the cost value of those shipments OR PARTS 2 OF SHIPMENTS to the assessing officer.For failure to comply3with this requirement, theA warehouse, dock,orport facili- 4 ty, individual, partnership, corporation, or owner is subject to 5 a fine of $100.00 for eachomissionFAILURE TO REPORT THE 6 DESTINATION AND COST VALUE OF SHIPMENTS OR PARTS OF SHIPMENTS AS 7 REQUIRED IN THIS SUBDIVISION. A person, firm, individual, part- 8 nership, corporation, or owner failing to report products, mate- 9 rials, or goods located in a warehouse, dock, or port facility to 10 the assessing officer is subject to a fine of $100.00 and a pen- 11 alty of 50% of the final amount of taxes found to be assessable 12 for the year on property not reported, the assessable taxes and 13 penalty to be spread on a subsequent assessment roll in the same 14 manner as general taxes on personal property. For the purpose of 15 this subdivision, a public warehouse, dock, or port facility 16 means a warehouse, dock, or port facility owned or operated by a 17 person, firm, or corporation engaged in the business of storing 18 products, materials, or goods for hire for profit who issues a 19 schedule of rates for storage of the products, materials, or 20 goods and who issues warehouse receipts pursuant toAct No. 30321of the Public Acts of 1909, being sections 443.50 to 443.55 of22the Michigan Compiled Laws1909 PA 303, MCL 443.50 TO 443.55. A 23 United States customs port of entry bonded warehouse means a 24 CUSTOMS warehouse within a classification designated by 19 25 C.F.R. 19.1 andwhichTHAT is located in a port of entry, as 26 defined by 19 C.F.R.101.1(m)101.1. A portion of a public 27 warehouse, United States customs port of entry bonded warehouse, 00762'99 8 1 dock, or port facility leased to a tenant or a portion of any 2 premises owned or leased or operated by a consignor or consignee 3 or an affiliate or subsidiary of the consignor or consignee 4shallIS notbe considereda public warehouse, dock, or port 5 facility. 6 (m) Personal property owned by a bank or trust company orga- 7 nized under the laws of this state, A national banking associa- 8 tion, or AN incorporated bank holding company as defined in sec- 9 tion 2 of the bank holding company act of 1956, chapter 240, 10 70 Stat. 133, 12 U.S.C. 1841, that controls a bank, national 11 banking association, trust company, or industrial bank subsidiary 12 located in this state.However, buildingsBUILDINGS owned by a 13 state or national bank, trust company, or incorporated bank hold- 14 ing company and situated upon lands of which the state or 15 national bank, trust company, or incorporated bank holding com- 16 pany is not the owner of the fee are considered real property and 17 are not exempt from taxation.and personalPERSONAL property 18 owned by a state or national bank, trust company, or incorporated 19 bank holding company that is leased, loaned, or otherwise made 20 available to and used by a private individual, association, or 21 corporation in connection with a business conducted for profit is 22 not exempt from taxation. 23 (n) Farm products, processed or otherwise, the ultimate use 24 of which is for human or animal consumption as food, except wine, 25 beer, and other alcoholic beverages regularly placed in storage 26 in a public warehouse, dock, or port facility,while in 27 storage are considered in transit and only temporarily at rest 00762'99 9 1,and are not subject to personal property taxation. The 2 assessing officer is the determining authority as to what consti- 3 tutes, is defined as, or classified as, farm products as used in 4 this subdivision. The records, accounts, and books of ware- 5 houses, docks, or port facilities, individuals, partnerships, 6 corporations, owners, or those in possession of farm products 7 shall be open to and available for inspection, examination, or 8 auditing by assessing officers. 9 (o) Sugar, in solid or liquid form, produced from sugar 10 beets,anddried beet pulp, and beet molasses, whenIF owned 11 or held by processors. 12 (p) The personal property of a parent cooperative 13 preschool. As used in this subdivision and section 7z, "parent 14 cooperative preschool" means a nonprofit, nondiscriminatory edu- 15 cational institution maintained as a community service and admin- 16 istered by parents of children currently enrolled in the pre- 17 school, that provides an educational and developmental program 18 for children younger than compulsory school age, that provides an 19 educational program for parents, including active participation 20 with children in preschool activities, that is directed by quali- 21 fied preschool personnel, and that is licensedby the department22of social servicesunderAct No. 116 of the Public Acts of231973, being sections 722.111 to 722.128 of the Michigan Compiled24Laws1973 PA 116, MCL 722.111 TO 722.128. 25 (q) All equipment used exclusively in wood harvesting, but 26 not including portable or stationary sawmills or other equipment 27 used in secondary processing operations. As used in this 00762'99 10 1 subdivision, "wood harvesting" meanstheclearingofland for 2 forest management purposes,theplantingoftrees,andall 3 forms of cutting or chippingoftrees, andtheloadingof4themTREES on trucks for removal from the harvest area. 5 (r) Liquefied petroleum gas tanks located on residential or 6 agricultural propertyandused to store liquefied petroleum gas 7 for residential or agricultural property use. As used in this 8 subdivision, "liquefied petroleum gas" means that term as defined 9 in section 51 ofAct No. 150 of the Public Acts of 1927, being10section 207.151 of the Michigan Compiled Laws1927 PA 150, MCL 11 207.151. 12 (s) Water conditioning systems used for a residential 13 dwelling. 00762'99 Final page. FDD