PRINTER'S NO. 1315

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA


HOUSE BILL

No. 1138 Session of 1975


        INTRODUCED BY BONETTO, GEORGE, KOLTER, ARTHURS AND STOUT,
           APRIL 29, 1975

        REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION, APRIL 29, 1975

                                     AN ACT

     1  Amending the act of April 9, 1929 (P.L.343, No.176), entitled
     2     "An act relating to the finances of the State government;
     3     providing for the settlement, assessment, collection, and
     4     lien of taxes, bonus, and all other accounts due the
     5     Commonwealth, the collection and recovery of fees and other
     6     money or property due or belonging to the Commonwealth, or
     7     any agency thereof, including escheated property and the
     8     proceeds of its sale, the custody and disbursement or other
     9     disposition of funds and securities belonging to or in the
    10     possession of the Commonwealth, and the settlement of claims
    11     against the Commonwealth, the resettlement of accounts and
    12     appeals to the courts, refunds of moneys erroneously paid to
    13     the Commonwealth, auditing the accounts of the Commonwealth
    14     and all agencies thereof, of all public officers collecting
    15     moneys payable to the Commonwealth, or any agency thereof,
    16     and all receipts of appropriations from the Commonwealth and
    17     imposing penalties; affecting every department, board,
    18     commission, and officer of the State government, every
    19     political subdivision of the State, and certain officers of
    20     such subdivisions, every person, association, and corporation
    21     required to pay, assess, or collect taxes, or to make returns
    22     or reports under the laws imposing taxes for State purposes,
    23     or to pay license fees or other moneys to the Commonwealth,
    24     or any agency thereof, every State depository and every
    25     debtor or creditor of the Commonwealth," providing for direct
    26     refunds of moneys erroneously received by the Department of
    27     Transportation and making an editorial change.

    28     The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
    29  hereby enacts as follows:
    30     Section 1.  The first paragraph of clause (a) of section 503,


     1  act of April 9, 1929 (P.L.343, No.176), known as "The Fiscal
     2  Code," amended June 23, 1965 (P.L.134, No.92), is amended to
     3  read:
     4     Section 503.  Refunds of State Taxes, License Fees, Et
     5  Cetera.--The Board of Finance and Revenue shall have the power,
     6  and its duty shall be,
     7     (a)  [To] Except as hereinafter provided with respect to the
     8  Department of Transportation, to hear and determine any petition
     9  for the refund of taxes, license fees, penalties, fines, bonuses
    10  or other moneys paid to the Commonwealth and to which the
    11  Commonwealth is not rightfully or equitably entitled and, upon
    12  the allowance of any such petition, to refund such taxes,
    13  license fees, penalties, fines, bonuses or other moneys, out of
    14  the fund into which such taxes, license fees, penalties, fines,
    15  bonuses or other moneys were originally paid, or to credit the
    16  account of the person, association, corporation, body politic,
    17  or public officer entitled to the refund. So much of the
    18  proceeds of the various taxes, license fees, penalties, fines,
    19  bonuses or other moneys as shall be necessary for the payment of
    20  refunds out of the General or Special Funds shall be authorized
    21  by the Governor. In the case of moneys erroneously received by
    22  the Department of Transportation for motor licenses, permits,
    23  rental fees, penalties, fines, bonuses, or other moneys, the
    24  Department of Transportation may make direct refunds when
    25  necessary from funds appropriated therefor from the proceeds of
    26  the various motor license fees, etc. in the Motor License Fund,
    27  which appropriations are hereby authorized. A list of the final
    28  amounts of any such refunds or credits in excess of five
    29  thousand dollars ($5,000.00) hereafter granted for corporation
    30  taxes, the names of the corporations entitled thereto, and a
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     1  brief summary of the reasons therefor, and a list of the names
     2  and final amounts of any such refunds or credits in excess of
     3  two hundred dollars ($200.00) hereafter granted to any persons
     4  or corporations shall be available for public inspection. The
     5  jurisdiction of the Board of Finance and Revenue to hear and
     6  determine a petition for refund, as aforesaid, shall not be
     7  affected or limited (I) by the fact that proceedings for review
     8  by the Board of Finance and Revenue or appeal to the [court of
     9  common pleas of Dauphin County] Commonwealth Court, involving
    10  the same tax or bonus and period for which a refund is sought,
    11  are pending, have been withdrawn, or have been otherwise closed,
    12  provided such proceedings relate to other objections than those
    13  raised in the petition for refund, or provided such petition for
    14  refund is based upon a final judgment or decision of a court of
    15  competent jurisdiction holding the act of Assembly under which
    16  the petitioner paid the tax or other money involved to be
    17  unconstitutional or to have been erroneously interpreted, or
    18  (II) the fact that a petition for resettlement or reassessment
    19  involving the same tax or bonus and period and involving either
    20  the same or different questions than those raised in the
    21  petition for refund is pending has been withdrawn or has been
    22  otherwise closed. All such petitions for refund must be filed
    23  with the board within two years of the payment of which refund
    24  is requested, or within two years of the settlement in the case
    25  of taxes or bonus, whichever period last expired, except
    26     * * *
    27     Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 1975.


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