CSSB 254(L&C): "An Act relating to the levy and collection of an assessment on certain tourism-related and recreation-related sales, leases, and rentals, to tourism marketing contracts, and to vehicle rental taxes; relating to Alaska marine highway system passenger fares; and providing for an effective date."
00 CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 254(L&C) 01 "An Act relating to the levy and collection of an assessment on certain tourism-related 02 and recreation-related sales, leases, and rentals, to tourism marketing contracts, and to 03 vehicle rental taxes; relating to Alaska marine highway system passenger fares; and 04 providing for an effective date." 05 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 06 * Section 1. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section 07 to read: 08 SHORT TITLE. This Act may be known as the Sustainable Tourism and Recreation 09 Assessment Act. 10 * Sec. 2. AS 19.65 is amended by adding a new section to read: 11 Sec. 19.65.037. The commissioner of transportation and public facilities shall 12 give a passenger who presents proof of Alaska residency a one percent discount on the 13 passenger's fare before application of the assessment under AS 44.33.126. 14 * Sec. 3. AS 43.52 is amended by adding a new section to read:
01 Sec. 43.52.095. Disposition of proceeds. (a) The proceeds of the taxes 02 levied in AS 43.52.010 and 43.52.030 shall be deposited into the sustainable tourism 03 and marketing account created in AS 44.33.134. 04 (b) The deposit required by this section is not intended to create a dedication 05 in violation of art. IX, sec. 7, Constitution of the State of Alaska. 06 * Sec. 4. AS 44.33.125(a) is amended to read: 07 (a) Subject to appropriations for the purpose, the Department of Community 08 and Economic Development shall, on or before April 1 of each fiscal year, contract 09 with a single qualified trade association for the purpose of planning and executing a 10 destination tourism marketing campaign during the next fiscal year. If a sustainable 11 tourism and recreation assessment under AS 44.33.126 is in effect when the 12 contract is executed, the qualified trade association may not be required to 13 provide matching funds. However, if a sustainable tourism and recreation 14 assessment under AS 44.33.126 is not in effect when the contract is executed, the 15 [THE] contract may be executed [AWARDED] only if the qualified trade association 16 provides matching funds equal to at least 50 [60] percent of the costs of the marketing 17 campaign described in the contract. The marketing campaign may promote distinct 18 segments of tourism, such as highway tourism, seasonal tourism, ecotourism, cultural 19 tourism, regional tourism, and rural tourism. Before the contract is executed, the 20 marketing campaign plan must be approved by the department. 21 * Sec. 5. AS 44.33 is amended by adding new sections to read: 22 Sec. 44.33.126. Sustainable tourism and recreation assessment. (a) A 23 sustainable tourism and recreation assessment is levied on 24 (1) the sale of land, water, and aerial transportation of passengers, to 25 the extent permitted by federal law; "aerial transportation" includes transportation by 26 tramway, ski tow, and ski lift; 27 (2) rental of accommodations in a hotel, motel, bed and breakfast, 28 recreational or vacation camp, recreational vehicle park, campground, or other 29 establishment, including an establishment owned or operated by the state or a 30 municipality, providing short-term lodging if the rental does not exceed a period of 30 31 consecutive days;
01 (3) the sale of recreational and adventure services, including guided 02 raft, kayak, and canoe trips, guided hiking trips, guided walking tours, guided motor 03 vehicle sightseeing tours, and fishing charters; 04 (4) the sale on or after May 1, but before October 1, in each calendar 05 year of tickets to theater productions, revues, cabarets, movies, readings, and other 06 entertainment offerings that feature the gold rush, Soapy Smith, or other Alaska 07 historical themes or figures, and that appeal primarily to visitors; 08 (5) goods sold by seasonal retail shops; for purposes of this paragraph, 09 "seasonal retail shop" means a retail store that makes more than 75 percent of its sales 10 on or after May 1 but before October 1 in each calendar year; and 11 (6) the retail sale of gifts and souvenirs featuring Alaska images and 12 not subject to assessment under (5) of this subsection; for purposes of this paragraph, 13 (A) "Alaska images" includes the word "Alaska," the name or 14 image of a municipality in the state, the name or image of an Alaska landmark, 15 whether natural or constructed, the image of the stars of the "Dipper," a picture 16 or scene associated with Alaska, and images of bears, moose, caribou, seals, 17 walrus, whales, eagles, salmon, wolves, sled dogs, and other animals and 18 wildlife associated with Alaska; 19 (B) "gifts and souvenirs" includes tee shirts, sweatshirts, and 20 other clothing, jewelry, glassware, cups, plates, cutlery, key chains, carvings, 21 statues, statuettes, clocks, books, paintings, prints, photographs, postcards, 22 calendars, and videos. 23 (b) The rate of the assessment is one percent. 24 (c) The provisions of AS 43.05 and AS 43.10 apply to the enforcement and 25 collection of the sustainable tourism and recreation assessment. 26 Sec. 44.33.127. Exemptions. The assessment levied under AS 44.33.126 27 does not apply to 28 (1) sales, leases, and rentals that are 29 (A) explicitly exempted from taxation under another provision 30 of state law; or 31 (B) exempt from taxation under federal law and purchases
01 made with 02 (i) food coupons, food stamps, or other types of 03 certificates issued under 7 U.S.C. 2011 - 2036 (Food Stamp Act); and 04 (ii) food instruments, food vouchers, or other types of 05 certificates issued under 42 U.S.C. 1786 (special supplemental nutrition 06 program for women, infants, and children); 07 (2) sales and purchases by federal government entities; 08 (3) purchases by state or local government entities; 09 (4) sales, leases, or rentals made to an entity described in 26 U.S.C. 10 501(c)(3) (Internal Revenue Code) and exempt from federal income tax under 26 11 U.S.C. 501(a); 12 (5) sales, leases, or rentals made by an entity described in 26 U.S.C. 13 501(c)(3) (Internal Revenue Code) and exempt from federal income tax under 26 14 U.S.C. 501(a) if the income from the sale or rental is exempt from federal income 15 taxation; 16 (6) casual and isolated sales, leases, or rentals by a seller who does not 17 regularly engage in the business of selling goods or services or making rentals, but 18 only if the total sales or rentals do not exceed $1,000 a year and the sales or rentals do 19 not occur for more than 14 days in a calendar year; 20 (7) transportation provided by a municipal bus service; 21 (8) transportation in a taxicab. 22 Sec. 44.33.128. Termination of the sustainable tourism and recreation 23 assessment. (a) The commissioner of revenue shall terminate a sustainable tourism 24 and recreation assessment levied under AS 44.33.126 if 25 (1) an election is held under AS 44.33.129 in which the termination is 26 approved by eligible visitor industry businesses that together account for at least 51 27 percent of the assessment paid under AS 44.33.126 - 44.33.139 for the prior calendar 28 year; or 29 (2) two-thirds of the board of a qualified trade association at a regular 30 meeting adopts a resolution requesting the commissioner of revenue to terminate the 31 assessment.
01 (b) An election under (a)(1) of this section shall be held if 02 (1) the proposed election for the termination of the assessment is 03 approved by a majority of the board of the qualified trade organization at a regularly 04 scheduled meeting; or 05 (2) a petition is presented to the director of elections requesting 06 termination of the assessment by eligible visitor industry businesses that together 07 account for at least 25 percent of the assessment paid under AS 44.33.126 - 44.33.139 08 for the prior calendar year. 09 (c) The qualified trade association shall provide notice of an election in 10 accordance with AS 44.33.129 within 60 days after receiving notice from the director 11 of elections that a valid petition under (b)(2) of this section has been received. 12 (d) The sustainable tourism and recreation assessment is terminated on the 13 next December 31 occurring at least five months after the date of the certification of 14 this election under AS 44.33.129. 15 Sec. 44.33.129. Procedures for an election to terminate a sustainable 16 tourism and recreation assessment. (a) A qualified trade association may conduct 17 an election under this section after the director of elections approves the 18 (1) notice to be published by the qualified trade association; 19 (2) ballot to be used in the election; and 20 (3) registration and voting procedures for the termination of the 21 sustainable tourism and recreation assessment. 22 (b) In conducting an election under this section, a qualified trade association 23 shall adopt the following procedures: 24 (1) the proposed termination of the assessment shall be adopted at a 25 regularly scheduled meeting of the board held not less than 60 days before the date on 26 which the ballots must be postmarked to be counted unless the election is for 27 termination of the assessment and has been initiated by a petition under 28 AS 44.33.128(b)(2); 29 (2) the qualified trade association shall hold at least one meeting, not 30 less than 30 days before the date on which ballots must be postmarked to be counted, 31 to explain the reason for the termination of the assessment and to explain the voting
01 procedure to be used in the election; the qualified trade association shall provide 02 notice of the meeting by 03 (A) mailing the notice to each eligible visitor industry business; 04 and 05 (B) publishing the notice in at least one newspaper of general 06 circulation in each region of the state at least two weeks before the meeting; 07 (3) the qualified trade association shall mail ballots to each eligible 08 visitor industry business not more than 45 days before the date specified as the date 09 ballots must be postmarked; 10 (4) the ballot must 11 (A) state the rate at which the assessment is levied; 12 (B) indicate the effective date of the termination of the 13 assessment if the termination is approved; 14 (C) ask whether the assessment shall be terminated; 15 (5) the ballots shall be returned by mail and shall be counted by the 16 director of elections or a representative. 17 (c) The director of elections shall certify the results of an election under this 18 section if the director determines that the requirements of (a) and (b) of this section 19 have been satisfied. 20 (d) For purposes of this section, a ballot submitted by a corporation is 21 presumed valid if the ballot is signed by an individual who is indicated to be an officer 22 of the corporation and the ballot is imprinted with the corporate seal. 23 Sec. 44.33.131. Determination of sales. (a) Upon request from the director 24 of elections, the commissioner of revenue shall determine 25 (1) the assessment paid under AS 44.33.126 - 44.33.139 for the prior 26 calendar year; 27 (2) whether, for purposes of AS 44.33.128(a), the eligible visitor 28 industry businesses approving the termination of a sustainable tourism and recreation 29 assessment together produced at least 51 percent of the assessment paid under 30 AS 44.33.126 - 44.33.139 for the prior calendar year; or 31 (3) whether the eligible visitor industry businesses petitioning for an
01 election under AS 44.33.128(b)(2) together produced at least 25 percent of the 02 assessment paid under AS 44.33.126 - 44.33.139 for the prior calendar year. 03 (b) Dollars paid with returns filed by providers for the calendar year shall be 04 considered probative of the amount of assessment paid for the calendar year, except 05 that the commissioner, at the commissioner's discretion, may substitute audit 06 assessments, claims for refund, or other pertinent evidence. 07 (c) A provider appealing the commissioner's determination shall be considered 08 aggrieved under AS 43.05.240. However, an appeal under that section may not delay 09 the commissioner's determination. 10 Sec. 44.33.132. Collection of assessment. (a) A provider shall add the 11 assessment levied in AS 44.33.126 to the total price of the sale, lease, or rental. 12 (b) The assessment shall be stated separately on any sales receipt, invoice, or 13 other record of the sale, lease, or rental. 14 (c) A provider shall collect the assessment from the person purchasing, 15 leasing, or renting the vehicle, accommodations, service, or ticket, and remit the 16 assessment to the department not later than 30 days following the last day of the 17 month in which the assessment was collected. However, a provider that collects less 18 than $1,000 in assessments in a calendar quarter may remit the assessments within 30 19 days following the last day of the calendar quarter in which the assessment was 20 collected. 21 (d) A provider remitting the assessment collected under AS 44.33.126 to the 22 department as required under (c) of this section and filing a complete and timely return 23 on a form prescribed by the department may retain one percent of the amount 24 collected to cover expenses associated with collecting and remitting the assessment. 25 (e) If a provider pays an independent agent a commission or other fee for 26 selling or arranging the sale, lease, or rental of a vehicle, accommodations, service, or 27 ticket subject to the assessment levied in AS 44.33.126, that commission shall be 28 considered part of the price of the sale, lease, or rental subject to the assessment levied 29 in AS 44.33.126. The provider shall pay the assessment on the commission. An 30 independent agent is not required to collect or remit the assessment on any resale of a 31 sale, lease, or rental of a vehicle, accommodations, service, or ticket subject to the
01 assessment levied in AS 44.33.126. 02 (f) The person providing a vehicle, accommodations, service, or ticket subject 03 to the assessment levied in AS 44.33.126 is liable for payment of the full assessment, 04 regardless of whether the person has collected the assessment. 05 (g) In this section, "independent agent" means a travel agent or ticket broker 06 who purchases accommodations, services, or tickets from a provider and resells them 07 to a consumer, or who arranges the sale of accommodations, services, or tickets on 08 behalf of a provider, but is not an employee of the provider. 09 Sec. 44.33.133. Exemption certificate. The department shall provide 10 exemption certificates to persons and entities exempt from the assessment under 11 AS 44.33.127. 12 Sec. 44.33.134. Disposition of proceeds. (a) The sustainable tourism and 13 marketing account is created in the general fund. 14 (b) The proceeds of the assessment levied under AS 44.33.126 and the vehicle 15 rental taxes levied under AS 43.52.010 and 43.52.030 shall be deposited into the 16 sustainable tourism and marketing account. 17 (c) The legislature may appropriate the money in the sustainable tourism and 18 marketing account to the Department of Community and Economic Development for 19 the purpose of entering into a contract with a qualified trade association for tourism 20 marketing under AS 44.33.125. 21 (d) The deposit required and appropriation authorized by this section are not 22 intended to create a dedication in violation of art. IX, sec. 7, Constitution of the State 23 of Alaska. 24 Sec. 44.33.139. Definitions. In AS 44.33.126 - 44.33.139, 25 (1) "board" means the board of directors of a qualified trade 26 organization; 27 (2) "eligible visitor industry business" means a business that would be 28 liable for payment of a sustainable tourism and recreation assessment under 29 AS 44.33.126; 30 (3) "provider" means a person providing a vehicle, accommodations, 31 service, or ticket subject to the assessment levied in AS 44.33.126; "provider" does not
01 include an independent agent; 02 (4) "qualified trade organization" means the trade organization 03 contracting with the Department of Community and Economic Development under 04 AS 44.33.125 for the fiscal year. 05 * Sec. 6. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 06 read: 07 APPLICABILITY. The amendments to AS 44.33.125 made in sec. 4 of this Act apply 08 to contracts for tourism marketing entered into under AS 44.33.125 for fiscal years beginning 09 July 1, 2005. 10 * Sec. 7. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 11 read: 12 TRANSITION: REGULATIONS. The Department of Revenue may proceed to adopt 13 regulations necessary to implement the provisions of this Act. The regulations take effect 14 under AS 44.62 (Administrative Procedure Act), but not before the effective date of the 15 provision being implemented. 16 * Sec. 8. Section 7 of this Act takes effect immediately under AS 01.10.070(c). 17 * Sec. 9. Except as provided in sec. 8 of this Act, this Act takes effect January 1, 2005.