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PRINTER'S NO. 1321
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No.
1085
Session of
2019
INTRODUCED BY BERNSTINE, PEIFER, DIAMOND, DUNBAR, GREINER, HELM,
IRVIN, KAUFER, MARSHALL, MILLARD, MOUL, PYLE, ROTHMAN, RYAN
AND STAATS, APRIL 8, 2019
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON FINANCE, APRIL 8, 2019
AN ACT
Repealing the act of June 22, 1935 (P.L.414, No.182), entitled
"An act to provide revenue for State purposes; imposing taxes
upon certain classes of personal property; providing for the
assessment, collection, and lien of the same, and the
distribution of the proceeds thereof; imposing duties on
executors, administrators, registers of wills, recorders of
deeds, prothonotaries, and court clerks, and on persons,
copartnerships, associations, banks, national banks, trust
companies, and other corporations receiving deposits of
money, and on certain corporations and limited partnerships;
conferring powers and imposing duties on certain State
officers and departments; imposing penalties; and making an
appropriation."
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. The act of June 22, 1935 (P.L.414, No.182), known
as the State Personal Property Tax Act, is repealed:
[AN ACT
To provide revenue for State purposes; imposing taxes upon
certain classes of personal property; providing for the
assessment, collection, and lien of the same, and the
distribution of the proceeds thereof; imposing duties on
executors, administrators, registers of wills, recorders of
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deeds, prothonotaries, and court clerks, and on persons,
copartnerships, associations, banks, national banks, trust
companies, and other corporations receiving deposits of
money, and on certain corporations and limited partnerships;
conferring powers and imposing duties on certain State
officers and departments; imposing penalties; and making an
appropriation.
Section 1. Short Title.--Be it enacted, &c., That this act
shall be known, and may be cited, as the "State Personal
Property Tax Act."
Section 2. Definitions.--The following words, terms, and
phrases, when used in this act, shall have the meanings ascribed
to them in this section, except where the context clearly
indicates a different meaning:
"Department." The Department of Revenue of this Commonwealth.
"Resident." A person, copartnership, or unincorporated
association or company, resident, located, or liable to taxation
within this Commonwealth, or a joint-stock company or
association, limited partnership, bank or corporation, formed,
created, or incorporated by, under, or in pursuance of, any law
of this Commonwealth or of the United States or of any other
state or government, and liable to taxation within this
Commonwealth.
The singular shall include the plural, and the masculine
shall include the feminine and the neuter.
Section headings shall not be deemed or construed to limit
the text of the sections of this act.
Section 3. State Tax on Mortgages, Judgments, Et Cetera;
Imposition and Rate of Tax; Exceptions.--All personal property
of the classes hereinafter enumerated, owned, held or possessed
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by any resident, whether such personal property be owned, held
or possessed by such resident in his own right, or as active
trustee, agent, attorney-in-fact, or by any resident as trustee,
agent or attorney-in-fact, jointly with one or more trustees,
agents or attorneys-in-fact domiciled in another state where
such personal property is held and managed in this Commonwealth,
or in any other capacity, except as executor or administrator of
the estate of a nonresident decedent, and except as trustee for
a resident or nonresident religious, charitable or educational
organization, no part of the net earnings of which inures to the
benefit of any private stockholder or individual, for the use,
benefit or advantage of any other person, copartnership,
unincorporated association, company, joint-stock company or
association, limited partnership, bank or corporation, and the
equitable interest in any such personal property of the classes
hereinafter enumerated, owned, held or possessed by any
resident, where the legal title to such personal property is
vested in a trustee, agent, or attorney-in-fact domiciled in
another state, or where the legal title to such personal
property is vested in more than one trustee, agent or attorney-
in-fact, one or more of whom are domiciled in another state, and
one or more of whom are domiciled within this Commonwealth and
such personal property is held and managed in another state, and
where such resident is entitled to receive all or any part of
the income therefrom, is hereby made taxable, annually, for
State purposes, at the rate of four mills on each dollar of the
value thereof, as of a date to be fixed annually, in the manner
provided in section five of this act, and no failure to assess
or return the same shall discharge such owner or holder thereof
from liability therefor; that is to say, --
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All mortgages; all moneys owing by solvent debtors, whether
by promissory note, or penal or single bill, bond or judgment;
all articles of agreement and accounts bearing interest; all
public loans whatsoever, except those issued by this
Commonwealth or the United States, and those made taxable for
State purposes by section seventeen hereof; all loans issued by
any corporation, association, company, or limited partnership,
created or formed under the laws of this Commonwealth or of the
United States, or of any other state or government, including
car-trust securities and loans secured by bonds or any other
form of certificate or evidence of indebtedness, whether the
interest be included in the principal of the obligation or
payable by the terms thereof, except such loans as are made
taxable for State purposes by section seventeen hereof; all
shares of stock in any bank, corporation, association, company,
or limited partnership, created or formed under the laws of this
Commonwealth or of the United States, or of any other state or
government, except shares of stock in any bank, bank and trust
company, national banking association, savings institution,
corporation, or limited partnership, liable to a tax on its
shares or the capital stock tax or franchise tax imposed by
section twenty-one of the act, approved the first day of June,
one thousand eight hundred eighty-nine (Pamphlet Laws, four
hundred twenty), and its amendments and supplements, for State
purposes under the laws of this Commonwealth; all moneys loaned
or invested in other states, territories, the District of
Columbia, or foreign countries; all other moneyed capital owing
to individual citizens of the State; and the principal value of
all annuities: Provided, That this section shall not apply to
bank notes or notes discounted or negotiated by any bank or
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banking institution, savings institution, or trust company, nor
to loans, shares of stock, or other securities held by bankers
or brokers solely for trading purposes, nor to accounts or debit
balances owing by customers of bankers or brokers in the usual
courses of business, nor to interest-bearing accounts in any
bank or banking institution, savings institution, employes
thrift or savings association, whether operated by employes or
the employer, or trust company, nor to personal property held in
the commercial department and owned in its own right by a
banking institution, savings institution or trust company in
liquidation by a receiver, trustee or other fiduciary, nor to
personal property formerly held by a banking institution in its
own right, but assigned by it to one or more trustees for
liquidation and payment to the creditors and stockholders of
such banking institutions: And provided further, That the
provisions of this act shall not apply to building and loan
associations or to shares of stock issued by building and loan
associations, or to savings institutions having no capital
stock, and, if at any time, either now or hereafter, any
persons, individuals or bodies corporate have agreed or shall
hereafter agree to issue his, their, or its securities, bonds or
other evidences of indebtedness, clear of and free from the said
four mills tax herein provided for, or any part thereof, or have
agreed or shall hereafter agree to pay the same, or any part
thereof, nothing herein contained shall be so construed as to
relieve or exempt him, it, or them from paying the said four
mills tax on any of the said securities, bonds, or other
evidences of indebtedness, as may be held, owned by, or owing to
the said savings institution having no capital stock: And
provided further, That the provisions of this act shall not
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apply to fire companies, firemen's relief associations, life,
casualty or fire insurance corporations having no capital stock,
secret and beneficial societies, labor unions and labor union
relief associations, and all beneficial organizations paying
sick or death benefits, or either or both, from funds received
from voluntary contributions or assessments upon members of such
associations, societies, or unions: And provided further, That
corporations, limited partnerships, and joint-stock
associations, liable to a tax on their shares or the aforesaid
capital stock or franchise tax for State purposes, shall not be
required to make any report or pay any further tax, under this
section, on the mortgages, bonds, and other securities owned by
them in their own right; but corporations, limited partnerships,
and joint-stock associations holding such securities as
trustees, executors, administrators, guardians, or in any other
manner, except as executor or administrator of the estate of a
nonresident decedent, and except as trustee for a resident or
nonresident religious, charitable or educational organization,
no part of the net earnings of which inures to the benefit of
any private stockholder or individual, shall return and pay the
tax imposed by this section upon all securities so held by them
as in the case of individuals: And provided further, That none
of the classes of property made taxable by this section for
State purposes shall be taxed or taxable for any other local
purpose under the laws of this Commonwealth, except for county
purposes, and in cities coextensive with counties for city and
county purposes, as now provided by law: And provided further,
That the provisions of this section shall not apply to personal
property of the class hereinabove enumerated, received from any
person or persons, copartnership, or unincorporated association,
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or company, nonresident in, or not located within, this
Commonwealth, or from any joint-stock company, or association,
limited partnership, bank or corporation formed, erected or
incorporated by, under, or in pursuance of, any law of the
United States, or of any state or government, other than this
Commonwealth, by any person or persons, copartnership,
unincorporated association, company, joint-stock company, or
association, limited partnership, bank, or corporation as active
trustee, agent, attorney-in-fact, or in any other capacity for
the use, benefit or advantage of any person or persons,
copartnership, or unincorporated association, or company,
nonresident in, or not located within, this Commonwealth, or for
the use, benefit or advantage of any joint-stock company or
association, limited partnership, bank or corporation formed,
erected or incorporated by, under, or in pursuance of, any law
of the United States or of any state or government, other than
this Commonwealth. Nor shall the provisions of this section
apply to personal property held for the use, benefit, or
advantage of any resident who shall have, in each of the ten
preceding calendar years, given or contributed all of his net
income to any corporation organized or operated exclusively for
religious, charitable, scientific, literary or educational
purposes.
The value of the equitable interest in any personal property,
made subject to tax by this section, shall be measured by
ascertaining the value of the personal property in which such
resident has the sole equitable interest, or in case of divided
equitable interests in the same personal property, then by
ascertaining such part of the value of the whole of such
personal property as represents the equitable interest of such
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resident therein.
Section 4. Returns and Payment of Tax.--(a) For the purpose
of ascertaining the amount of tax, payable under the third
section of this act, it shall be the duty of every resident,
liable to pay such tax, on or before the fifteenth day of
February of each year, to transmit to the department upon a form
prescribed, prepared, and furnished by the department, a return
in duplicate, the original under oath or affirmation, of:
(1) The aggregate actual value of each part of the different
classes of property, made taxable by the third section of this
act, held, owned or possessed by such resident, as of the date
fixed annually in the manner provided in section five of this
act, either in his own right or as trustee, agent, attorney-in-
fact, or in any other capacity for the use, benefit or advantage
of any other person, copartnership, unincorporated association,
company, limited partnership, joint-stock association, or
corporation.
(2) The amount of interest, dividends or other income
derived from each class of such property at any time during the
preceding calendar year; and
(3) Such other information as may be required by the
department concerning each of the different classes of property,
whether or not taxable, enumerated in the third section of this
act, owned, held, or in any manner possessed by such resident.
The duplicate unsworn return shall be forwarded by the
Department of Revenue to the county commissioners, board of
revision of taxes, or board for the assessment and revision of
taxes, as the case may be, of the county from which the return
was made for its use and information.
The failure of any taxable resident to receive or procure a
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return form shall not excuse him from making a return.
(b) The return, so made, shall be sworn or affirmed to by
the person making the same, if an individual, and in the case of
copartnerships, unincorporated associations, and joint-stock
associations, and companies by some member thereof, and in the
case of limited partnerships and corporations by the president,
chairman or treasurer thereof.
(c) Any agent, duly authorized by the department, is hereby
authorized to administer the oath or affirmation to any person
of officer making the return prescribed by this section, for the
taking of which oath or affirmation no charge shall be made.
Any such agent, who shall make any charge for administering such
oath or affirmation, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor,
and, upon conviction thereof, shall be sentenced to pay a fine
not exceeding five hundred dollars ($500.00) or to undergo
imprisonment not exceeding one (1) year, either or both, in the
discretion of the court.
(d) The tax, imposed by section three hereof, shall be due
and payable when such return is required to be filed, and every
resident, at the time of making every return, shall compute and
pay to the department the tax due the Commonwealth by such
resident.
Section 5. Listing Date.--The department shall, on or before
the fifteenth day of January, one thousand nine hundred thirty-
eight, and annually thereafter, fix a day as of which the
property, made taxable by the third section of this act, shall
be listed and returned. The day, so fixed, shall be between the
first and the fifteenth days of the month of January, both
inclusive, and the day so fixed, shall be printed or stamped on
the forms for making returns of all such property. If through
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inadvertence, mistake, or otherwise the department fails to
designate or fix such date, or if such date does not appear on
the form for making return of such property, the date, as of
which such property shall be listed and assessed, shall be the
immediately preceding first day of January.
Section 6. Assessment by the Department; Notice.--If any
taxable resident shall fail to file a return or fail to include
in any return all of his property made taxable by the third
section of this act or shall fail to compute and pay the tax due
the Commonwealth as required in this act, the department shall
make an assessment of tax against such resident of the amount of
tax for which such resident is liable, or for which he is
believed by the department to be liable, together with a penalty
of ten per centum of such tax. Promptly thereafter, the
department shall give, or send by mail, or otherwise, notice
thereof to such resident. If such resident is dissatisfied with
the assessment so made, he may petition for a reassessment in
the manner hereinafter provided.
Section 7. Assessments Made at any Time within Five Years.--
An assessment, as heretofore provided, may be made by the
department at any time within five (5) years after any property
owned, held or possessed, or alleged to have been so owned, held
or possessed, by any resident should have been returned by him
for taxation, notwithstanding he shall have paid a tax assessed
on the basis of returns previously made or filed, and
notwithstanding the department shall have made previous
assessments against such resident. In any such case, no credit
shall be given for any penalty formerly assessed and paid.
Section 8. Petition for Reassessment; Appeal.--(a) Any
resident, against whom an assessment is made, may petition the
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department for a reassessment. Notice of an intention to file
such a petition or to appear and be heard shall be given to the
department within ninety (90) days after notice of such
assessment is given or sent by the department to the taxpayer as
provided in this act. The department shall hold such hearings,
as may be necessary to hear and determine petitions for
reassessment, at such places and at such times as may be
determined by rules and regulations of the department, and each
petitioner, who has duly notified the department of an intention
to file a petition for reassessment or to appear and be heard,
shall be notified by the department of the time when, and the
place where such hearings shall be held. All such petitions
shall set forth specifically and in detail the grounds upon
which it is claimed the assessment is erroneous or unlawful, and
shall be accompanied by an affidavit under oath or affirmation
certifying to the correctness of the facts stated therein. If no
petition for reassessment is filed with the department, the
petitioner may, in lieu thereof, appear at the hearing, and
present his petition orally, in which event all testimony or
statements of facts shall be made under oath or affirmation.
Section 9. Information at Source; Reports.--(a) The
executor of every will, and the administrator of every estate,
at the time of filing with the register of wills or clerk of the
orphans' court the inventory and appraisal of such estate, or of
any affidavit setting forth the real and personal estate of such
decedent for the purpose of determining the transfer inheritance
tax imposed thereon by existing law, shall, in addition thereto,
file with such register of wills or clerk of the orphans' court,
a statement in duplicate, under oath or affirmation, setting
forth the items included in such inventory or affidavit which
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may be liable to the tax imposed by the third section of this
act. The register or clerk, with whom the same is filed, shall
forthwith send one copy thereof to the department. It shall be
the duty of the department to proceed at once to assess the tax
due from such decedent, with interest as heretofore provided in
this act, and to present a claim therefor through the Department
of Justice to the orphans' court of the proper county, or to
proceed by action or suit at law through the Department of
Justice in any court of competent jurisdiction for the recovery
thereof, or to take any or all appropriate steps or procedure
necessary for the collection of such tax.
(b) It shall be the duty of the recorder of deeds in each
and every county in this Commonwealth to keep a daily record,
separate and apart from all other records, of every mortgage or
article of agreement given to secure the payment of money
entered in his office for recording, which record shall set
forth the following information, to wit: The date of the
mortgage or agreement, the names of the parties thereto, the
just sum of money secured, the precise residence of the
mortgagee or person to whom interest is payable, a brief
description of the real estate upon which such mortgage is
secured, and the date or several dates when the said sum or
portion of the said sum shall become due and payable, and a like
daily record of every assignment of a mortgage or an article of
agreement given to secure the payment of money, and also the
number of mortgages and agreements, together with the amount of
same, and the names of the parties thereto, which shall have
been that day satisfied of record. For the purpose of obtaining
with accuracy the precise residence of all mortgagees, assignees
and persons to whom interest is payable on articles of
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agreement, it shall be the duty of the recorder of deeds in each
county, whenever a mortgage, assignment, or agreement given to
secure the payment of money shall be presented to him for
record, to refuse the same unless the mortgage, assignment, or
agreement has attached thereto, and made part thereof, a
certificate signed by the mortgagee, assignee, or person
entitled to interest, or his duly authorized attorney or agent,
setting forth the precise residence of such mortgagee, assignee,
or person entitled to interest, and such certificate shall be
recorded with the mortgage, assignment, or agreement. Every
recorder of deeds on the first Monday of each month, shall file
the aforesaid daily record, or a copy thereof, with the
department.
(c) It shall be the duty of the prothonotary or clerk of the
court of common pleas in each and every county in this
Commonwealth, forthwith upon the passage of this act, to keep a
daily record, separate and apart from all other records, of
every single bill, bond, judgment, or other instrument securing
a debt, entered of record in his office. Such daily record shall
set forth the following information, to wit: The date of the
instrument, the names of the plaintiff and defendant, together
with the precise residence of the plaintiff or person to whose
use such bill, bond, judgment, or other obligation to pay money
is marked, whenever such residence can be ascertained, the just
sum secured, and the date or several dates when the said sum or
portion of the same shall become due and payable, with the
further information whether any of said bonds or judgments are
accompanied with mortgages, and also the number of every single
bill, bond, judgment or other instrument securing a debt,
together with the amount of same, and the names of the plaintiff
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and defendant thereto, which shall have been that date
satisfied. The prothonotary or clerk of the court of common
pleas shall file the aforesaid daily record, or a copy thereof,
with the department on the first Monday of each month.
Section 10. Compensation of Recorders and Prothonotaries.--
The several recorders of deeds, prothonotaries, and court clerks
as aforesaid, shall be entitled to receive ten cents for each
and every mortgage, judgment, or lien, assignment or
satisfaction thereof, reported to the department as heretofore
required in this act. Such fees shall be paid by the respective
county treasurers, on the presentation of proper vouchers,
certified by the department, and shall be applied in like manner
as other fees received by such recorders, prothonotaries, or
clerks: Provided, That no fee shall be allowed in any case where
the residence of any plaintiff, mortgagee, or assignee is
omitted in such reports: And provided further, That the amount
allowed any prothonotary or clerk or recorder of deeds, under
this act, shall not exceed the sum of six hundred dollars
($600.00) per annum.
Section 11. Due Date.--All taxes, imposed by the third
section of this act, shall be due and payable on the fifteenth
day of February of each year.
Section 12. Interest.--The tax, imposed by the third section
of this act, shall bear interest at the rate of six per centum
per annum from the date such tax is due and payable until thirty
(30) days after the department shall make an assessment, and
thereafter at the rate of twelve per centum per annum until
paid, except that any tax found due, as the result of an appeal
to the court of common pleas or any appellate court, shall bear
interest at the rate of six per centum per annum from the date
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the tax was originally due and payable until paid.
Any tax imposed by the third section of this act due and
payable by any individual for any year during any part of which
he served in the armed services of the United States in World
War II may be satisfied upon payment prior to January first, one
thousand nine hundred forty-nine, of the tax as originally due,
without the addition thereto of any interest or other penalty.
Section 13. Lien of Taxes.--(a) All taxes, imposed under
the third section of this act, together with all penalties and
interest, shall be considered a public account after becoming
due and payable in the manner prescribed in this act and as such
shall be a lien upon the franchises and real property of the
resident against whom the same are assessed, after the same has
been entered and docketed of record by the prothonotary of the
county where the resident's franchises or property are situated.
(b) The department may at any time transmit to the
prothonotaries of the respective counties of the Commonwealth,
to be by them entered of record, certified copies of all liens
for taxes, imposed by the third section of this act, and
penalties and interest, upon which record, it shall be lawful
for writs of scire facias to issue and be prosecuted to judgment
and execution in the same manner as such writs are ordinarily
employed: Provided, That execution shall be stayed until January
first, one thousand nine hundred forty-nine, in the case of any
lien arising from any such tax imposed by the third section of
this act due and payable by any individual for any year during
any part of which he served in the armed forces of the United
States in World War II.
Section 14. Credits for Overpayment.--The Board of Finance
and Revenue may allow a credit for any taxes, imposed by the
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third section of this act, and penalties and interest thereon,
paid to the Commonwealth, to which the Commonwealth is not
rightfully or equitably entitled. Claims for such credits shall
be made in accordance with the provisions of "The Fiscal Code"
relative to petitions for refunds of taxes. No petition for such
credit shall be considered by the board, unless filed with the
board within two (2) years of the payment alleged to have been
erroneously made.
Upon the allowance of any such petition, the credit so
determined, may be applied against any amount due, or
subsequently becoming due, by such petitioner on account of
taxes imposed by the third section of this act, and penalties
and interest thereon, or may be assigned in whole or in part to
any other taxable resident, to be applied against any amount
due, or subsequently becoming due, by such resident on account
of taxes imposed by the third section of this act, and penalties
and interest thereon. Upon the allowance of a petition for
credit, the board shall issue its certificate under its hand and
seal, and no credit claimed, whether assigned or not, shall be
allowed unless evidenced by such certificate.
The board shall issue its certificate of credit for any
payment made by any individual on account of interest or penalty
on any tax imposed by the third section of this act for any year
during any part of which such individual served in the armed
forces of the United States in World War II.
Section 15. Penalties, Costs.--(a) Every person or officer,
who shall wilfully and corruptly make a false and fraudulent
return of property, made taxable by the third section of this
act, shall be guilty of wilful and corrupt perjury, and, upon
conviction thereof, shall be subject to punishment as provided
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by law.
(b) Any wilful failure on the part of recorders of deeds or
prothonotaries or clerks to carry out the duties, imposed upon
them by section nine of this act, shall be deemed a misdemeanor,
and, upon conviction thereof, the person or persons so failing
to comply, shall be sentenced to pay a fine not exceeding five
hundred dollars ($500.00) or to undergo imprisonment not
exceeding one (1) year, or both, in the discretion of the court.
(c) Every register of wills, who shall fail to send copies
of affidavits filed with him by executors or administrators to
the department, as required by section nine of this act, shall
be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, the
register, so failing, shall be sentenced to pay a fine not
exceeding five hundred dollars ($500.00) or to undergo
imprisonment not exceeding one (1) year, or both, in the
discretion of the court.
(d) Every executor or administrator, who wilfully fails to
file the affidavit with the register of wills, as required by
section nine of this act, shall be subject to a penalty of
twenty-five dollars ($25.00) for the first day, and ten dollars
($10.00) for each succeeding day during which such affidavit is
not filed, to be collected by the department through the
Department of Justice, in the same manner as debts are by law
collected.
(e) Whenever any person acting for, or on behalf of, the
department shall in good faith institute legal proceedings for
any violations of the provisions of this act, and for any reason
shall fail to recover costs of record, such costs shall be a
charge upon the proper county, as shall such costs in the event
defendant is imprisoned for failure to pay fine or costs, or
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both, and shall be audited and paid as are costs of like
character in said county.
Section 16. Enforcement; Rules and Regulations;
Inquisitorial Powers of the Department.--(a) The department is
hereby charged with the enforcement of the provisions of this
act and is hereby authorized and empowered to prescribe, adopt,
promulgate, and enforce rules and regulations relating to any
matter or thing pertaining to the administration and enforcement
of the provisions of this act, and the collection of taxes,
penalties, and interest imposed by this act.
(b) The department or any agent authorized, in writing, by
it, is hereby authorized to examine the books, papers, and
records of any resident in order to verify the accuracy of any
return made, or if no return was made, to ascertain and assess
the tax imposed by the third section of this act. Every such
resident is hereby directed and required to give to the
department, or its duly authorized agent the means, facilities,
and opportunity for such examinations and investigations as are
hereby provided and authorized. The department is hereby
authorized to examine any person under oath concerning any
property which was, or should have been, returned for taxation,
and to this end may compel the production of books, papers, and
records, and the attendance of all persons, whether as parties
or witnesses, whom it believes have knowledge of such property.
The procedure for such hearing or examination shall be the same
as that provided by "The Fiscal Code" relating to inquisitorial
powers of fiscal officers.
Any information gained by the department as a result of any
returns, investigations, hearings, or verifications required or
authorized by this act, and any information gained by the county
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commissioners, board of revision of taxes, or board for the
assessment and revision of taxes, as the result of duplicate
returns received from the department, shall be confidential,
except for official purposes, and any person or agent divulging
such information shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and,
upon conviction thereof, shall be sentenced to pay a fine not in
excess of five hundred dollars ($500.00) or to undergo
imprisonment for not more than three (3) years, or both, in the
discretion of the court.
(c) The powers conferred by this act upon the department,
relating to the administration or enforcement of this act, shall
be in addition to, but not exclusive of, any other powers
heretofore or hereafter conferred upon the department by law.
Section 19. Constitutional Construction.--If any section,
sentence, clause or part of this act is for any reason held to
be unconstitutional, the decision of the court shall not affect
or impair any of the remaining provisions of this act. It is
hereby declared as the legislative intent that this act would
have been adopted had such unconstitutional sentence, section,
clause, or part thereof, not been included herein.
Section 20. Repealer and Saving Clause.--(a) All acts or
parts of acts inconsistent with the provisions of this act are
hereby repealed, but the provisions of this act, so far as they
are the same as those of existing laws, shall be construed as a
continuation of such laws and not as new enactments.
(b) Sections seventeen and eighteen of the act, approved the
seventeenth day of June, one thousand nine hundred thirteen
(Pamphlet Laws, five hundred seven), entitled "An act to provide
revenue for State and county purposes, and, in cities
coextensive with counties, for city and county purposes;
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imposing taxes upon certain classes of personal property;
providing for the assessment and collection of the same;
providing for the duties and compensation of prothonotaries and
recorders in connection therewith; and modifying existing
legislation which provided for raising revenue for State
purposes," and their amendments, are hereby repealed, but this
act shall not be construed to repeal any of the remaining
provisions of said act.
(c) Nothing herein contained shall be construed as reviving
any act repealed by the act which this act repeals, and the
passage of this act shall not be taken or construed to relieve
any person, association or corporation from the payment of any
taxes, penalties and interest imposed by section seventeen of
the said act of June seventeenth, one thousand nine hundred and
thirteen (Pamphlet Laws, five hundred seven) or from any taxes,
penalties and interest imposed by the provisions of any act, or
parts of acts, in force at the time this act becomes effective,
or to affect or terminate any petitions, investigations,
prosecutions, legal or otherwise, or other proceedings pending
under the provisions of any act, or parts of acts, in force at
the time this act becomes effective, or repealed by this act, or
to prevent the commencement or further prosecution of any legal
proceedings by the proper authorities of the Commonwealth for
violations of such acts, or for the collection or recovery of
taxes, penalties and interest due or owing to the Commonwealth
under such acts.
Section 21. Effective Date.--This act shall become effective
immediately upon its final enactment, and be in force for the
assessment and collection of taxes under section three of this
act, for the calendar years one thousand nine hundred thirty-
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eight, one thousand nine hundred thirty-nine, one thousand nine
hundred forty, one thousand nine hundred forty-one, one thousand
nine hundred forty-two, and one thousand nine hundred forty-
three and for the collection of taxes under section seventeen of
this act for the calendar year one thousand nine hundred thirty-
eight, and every year thereafter, on reports filed for the
calendar year one thousand nine hundred thirty-eight (or for any
fiscal year beginning in the calendar year one thousand nine
hundred thirty-eight), and for every year thereafter.]
Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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