May 27, 2010, Introduced by Rep. Meadows and referred to the Committee on Tax Policy.
A bill to amend 1905 PA 282, entitled
"An act to provide for the assessment of the property, by
whomsoever owned, operated or conducted, of railroad companies,
union station and depot companies, telegraph companies, telephone
companies, sleeping car companies, express companies, car loaning
companies, stock car companies, refrigerator car companies, and
fast freight companies, and all other companies owning, leasing,
running or operating any freight, stock, refrigerator, or any other
cars, not being exclusively the property of any railroad company
paying taxes upon its rolling stock under the provisions of this
act, over or upon the line or lines of any railroad or railroads in
this state, and for the levy of taxes thereon by a state board of
assessors, and for the collection of such taxes, and to repeal all
acts or parts of acts contravening any of the provisions of this
act,"
by amending section 13 (MCL 207.13), as amended by 2001 PA 35.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec. 13. (1) The state board of assessors, from the
information contained in the reports provided for in section 12,
shall determine for the year in which the reports are required to
be made the average rate of taxation levied on other commercial,
industrial, and utility property on which ad valorem taxes are
assessed for state, county, township, school, and municipal
purposes, and enter the determination in its records, together with
the method by which the average rate of taxation was determined. In
determining the average rate of taxation for taxes levied under
this
act, before January 1, 1996, the state board of assessors
shall
divide the state equalized value as set by the state board of
equalization
for the previous year into the total ad valorem taxes
as
reported by each director of a county tax or equalization
department
as provided in section 12. In determining the average
rate
of taxation for taxes levied under this act after December 31,
1995,
the state board of assessors shall
divide the state taxable
value for the previous year into the total ad valorem taxes as
reported by each director of a county tax or equalization
department
as provided in section 12. In determining the average
rate
of taxation for 1994, ad valorem taxes levied for the year in
which
the reports are required by a local school district for
school
operating purposes as defined in section 1211 of the revised
school
code, 1976 PA 451, MCL 380.1211, shall be excluded from the
calculation
required by this section and the state board of
assessors
shall add to the tax rate calculated under this section
after
the exclusion required by this sentence, the number of mills
levied
under the state education tax act, 1993 PA 331, MCL 211.901
to
211.906, plus the statewide average number of mills levied in
1994
by local school districts for school operating purposes under
the
revised school code, 1976 PA 451, MCL 380.1 to 380.1852. If the
state
board of assessors is unable to determine the average rate of
taxation
for 1994 before June 1, 1994, the state board of assessors
shall
determine a preliminary average rate of taxation that shall
be
used to complete the 1994 tax roll under section 14. However,
before
June 1, 1995, the state board of assessors shall determine
and
certify the average rate of taxation for 1994 and prepare a
supplemental
1994 tax roll using the 1994 assessed valuations for
the
purpose of levying a supplemental tax or making a refund. The
supplemental
tax is due and payable and the refund, if any, is due
July 1, 1995 without interest. If the supplemental tax is paid
after
August 1, 1995, the tax is payable with interest due at the
rate
of 1% per month or portion of a month calculated from January
15,
1995 to the date of payment.
(2)
A Before October 1, 2010, a railroad company is
allowed a
credit against the tax imposed by this act for the tax year in an
amount equal to 25% of the amount expended for the maintenance or
improvement of rights of way, including those items, except
depreciation, in the official maintenance-of-way and capital track
accounts of the railroad company in this state during the calendar
year immediately preceding the tax year but not to exceed the total
liability for the tax under this act. The manner of applying for
the credit and the proof of expenditures required shall be
prescribed by the state board of assessors.
(3)
A railroad company that claims a credit under this section
subsection (2) is required to file an annual report with the state
board of assessors that shall include detailed data of right of way
work conducted in this state during the past calendar year. The
state board of assessors shall transmit a copy of the report to the
chairperson
of the senate finance committee and the house taxation
tax policy committee. This report submitted to the state board of
assessors shall include the number of notices of violation from
railway inspectors by railroad section, and shall include a
detailed account of the location and the nature of the work. The
location of the work shall be defined by the railroad section or
mile posts surrounding the work area plus the county, city, or
township in which the work was performed. This report shall include
a separation of costs by labor and materials on each project. The
report also shall include an itemized account of what work was
done. This account shall be itemized by the following categories:
(a) Miles of track laid.
(b) Tons of new ballast installed.
(c) Number of ties installed.
(d) Miles of tracks surfaced.
(e) Signals installed.
(f) Under drainage work done.
(4) The railroad companies, in order to qualify for the full
25%
credit under this act, subsection
(2), must demonstrate to the
state board of assessors that the highest priority of expenditures
for the maintenance or improvement of rights of way has been given
to rail lines that handle hazardous materials, especially those
that are located in urban or residential areas. A railroad company
that
claims a credit under this section subsection (2) is required
to file an annual report with the state board of assessors that
shall include detailed data on the tonnages of hazardous materials
handled in relation to tonnages of other traffic handled over the
rail line for which a tax credit is being applied.
(5)
A railroad company utilizing the property tax that claims
a
credit provisions of this act under subsection (2) shall grant to
another railroad company, upon application by the latter, trackage
rights over its line for trains, providing that the train
operations do not interfere with the movement of Michigan freight
using the same trackage, if operations can be accomplished safely
in the opinion of the grantor and if trackage arrangements and
train operations are approved by the interstate commerce
commission. The grantee shall pay the grantor reasonable charges
agreed to between the 2 parties if the charges and terms of the
agreement between the 2 parties are not in violation of the
antitrust provisions of federal laws.