Rep. Norm Thurston — Voting Record

Bill

Number

S.B. 156 (2015GS)

Sponsor

Sen. Dayton, M.

Final action

Governor Signed 3/31/2015

Outcome

Became law — signed by Gov. Gary R. Herbert

Summary

What it does

• This bill:
• defines terms;
• enacts an energy efficient vehicle tax credit for certain motorcycles; and
• makes technical and conforming changes.

Every vote on this bill

Bill text

ENERGY EFFICIENT VEHICLE TAX CREDIT FOR
MOTORCYCLES
GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Margaret Dayton
House Sponsor: 
 Keith Grover
LONG TITLE
General Description:
This bill enacts an energy efficient vehicle tax credit for certain motorcycles.
Highlighted Provisions:
This bill:
▸ defines terms;
▸ enacts an energy efficient vehicle tax credit for certain motorcycles; and
▸ makes technical and conforming changes.
Money Appropriated in this Bill:
None
Other Special Clauses:
This bill provides for retrospective operation.
Utah Code Sections Affected:
AMENDS:
59-7-605
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2014, Chapter 125
59-10-1009
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2014, Chapter 125
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
Section 1. Section 
59-7-605
 is amended to read:
59-7-605.
Definitions -- Tax credits related to energy efficient vehicles.
(1) As used in this section:
(a) "Air quality standards" means that a vehicle's emissions are equal to or cleaner than
the standards established in bin 4 in Table S04-1, of 40 C.F.R. 86.1811-04(c)(6).
(b) "Board" means the Air Quality Board created under Title 19, Chapter 2, Air
Conservation Act.
(c) "Certified by the board" means that:
(i) a motor vehicle on which conversion equipment has been installed meets the
following criteria:
(A) before the installation of conversion equipment, the vehicle does not exceed the
emission cut points for a transient test driving cycle, as specified in 40 C.F.R. Part 51,
Appendix E to Subpart S, or an equivalent test for the make, model, and year of the vehicle;
and
(B) as a result of the installation of conversion equipment on the motor vehicle, the
motor vehicle has reduced emissions; or
(ii) special mobile equipment on which conversion equipment has been installed has
reduced emissions.
(d) "Clean fuel grant" means a grant awarded under Title 19, Chapter 1, Part 4, Clean
Fuels and Vehicle Technology Program Act, for reimbursement of a portion of the incremental
cost of an OEM vehicle or the cost of conversion equipment.
(e) "Conversion equipment" means equipment [
referred to
] 
described
 in Subsection
[
(2)(c) or (d)
] 
(2)(d) or (e)
.
(f) "OEM vehicle" has the same meaning as in Section 
19-1-402
.
(g) "Original purchase" means the purchase of a vehicle that has never been titled or
registered and has been driven less than 7,500 miles.
(h) "Qualifying electric motorcycle" means a vehicle that:
(i) has a seat or saddle for the use of the rider;
(ii) is designed to travel with not more than three wheels in contact with the ground;
(iii) may lawfully be operated on a freeway, as defined in Section 
41-6a-102
;
(iv) is not fueled by natural gas;
(v) is fueled by electricity only; and
(vi) is an OEM vehicle except that the vehicle is fueled by a fuel described in
Subsection (1)(h)(v).
[
(h)
] 
(i)
 "Qualifying electric vehicle" means a vehicle that:
(i) meets air quality standards;
(ii) is not fueled by natural gas;
(iii) is fueled by electricity only; and
(iv) is an OEM vehicle except that the vehicle is fueled by a fuel described in
Subsection (1)[
(h)
]
(i)
(iii).
[
(i)
] 
(j)
 "Qualifying plug-in hybrid vehicle" means a vehicle that:
(i) meets air quality standards;
(ii) is not fueled by natural gas or propane;
(iii) has a battery capacity that meets or exceeds the battery capacity described in
Section 30D(b)(3), Internal Revenue Code; and
(iv) is fueled by a combination of electricity and:
(A) diesel fuel;
(B) gasoline; or
(C) a mixture of gasoline and ethanol.
[
(j)
] 
(k)
 "Reduced emissions" means:
(i) for purposes of a motor vehicle on which conversion equipment has been installed,
that the motor vehicle's emissions of regulated pollutants, when operating on a fuel listed in
Subsection (2)[
(d)
]
(e)
(i) or (ii), is less than the emissions were before the installation of the
conversion equipment, as demonstrated by:
(A) certification of the conversion equipment by the federal Environmental Protection
Agency or by a state that has certification standards recognized by the board;
(B) testing the motor vehicle, before and after installation of the conversion equipment,
in accordance with 40 C.F.R. Part 86, Control of Emissions from New and In-use Highway
Vehicles and Engines, using all fuel the motor vehicle is capable of using;
(C) for a retrofit natural gas vehicle that is retrofit in accordance with Section
19-1-406
, testing that as a result of the retrofit, the retrofit natural gas vehicle satisfies the
emission standards applicable under Section 
19-1-406
; or
(D) any other test or standard recognized by board rule, made in accordance with Title
63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act; or
(ii) for purposes of special mobile equipment on which conversion equipment has been
installed, that the special mobile equipment's emissions of regulated pollutants, when operating
on [
fuels
] 
a fuel
 listed in Subsection (2)[
(d)
]
(e)
(i) or (ii), is less than the emissions were before
the installation of conversion equipment, as demonstrated by:
(A) certification of the conversion equipment by the federal Environmental Protection
Agency or by a state that has certification standards recognized by the board; or
(B) any other test or standard recognized by board rule, made in accordance with Title
63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act.
[
(k)
] 
(l)
 "Special mobile equipment":
(i) means any mobile equipment or vehicle that is not designed or used primarily for
the transportation of persons or property; and
(ii) includes construction or maintenance equipment.
(2) For the taxable year beginning on or after January 1, 2015, but beginning on or
before December 31, 2015, a taxpayer may claim a tax credit against tax otherwise due under
this chapter or Chapter 8, Gross Receipts Tax on Certain Corporations Not Required to Pay
Corporate Franchise or Income Tax Act, in an amount equal to:
(a) (i) for the original purchase of a new qualifying electric vehicle that is registered in
this state, the lesser of:
(A) $1,500; or
(B) 35% of the purchase price of the vehicle; or
(ii) for the original purchase of a new qualifying plug-in hybrid vehicle that is
registered in this state, $1,000;
(b) for the original purchase of a new vehicle fueled by natural gas or propane that is
registered in this state, the lesser of:
(i) $1,500; or
(ii) 35% of the purchase price of the vehicle;
(c) for the original purchase of a new qualifying electric motorcycle that is registered in
this state, the lesser of:
(i) $750; or
(ii) 35% of the purchase price of the vehicle;
[
(c)
] 
(d)
 50% of the cost of equipment for conversion, if certified by the board, of a
motor vehicle registered in this state minus the amount of any clean fuel grant received, up to a
maximum tax credit of $1,500 per motor vehicle, if the motor vehicle is to:
(i) be fueled by propane, natural gas, or electricity;
(ii) be fueled by other fuel the board determines annually on or before July 1 to be at
least as effective in reducing air pollution as fuels under Subsection (2)[
(c)
]
(d)
(i); or
(iii) meet the federal clean-fuel vehicle standards in the federal Clean Air Act
Amendments of 1990, 42 U.S.C. Sec. 7521 et seq.;
[
(d)
] 
(e)
 50% of the cost of equipment for conversion, if certified by the board, of a
special mobile equipment engine minus the amount of any clean fuel grant received, up to a
maximum tax credit of $1,000 per special mobile equipment engine, if the special mobile
equipment is to be fueled by:
(i) propane, natural gas, or electricity; or
(ii) other fuel the board determines annually on or before July 1 to be:
(A) at least as effective in reducing air pollution as the fuels under Subsection
(2)[
(d)
]
(e)
(i); or
(B) substantially more effective in reducing air pollution than the fuel for which the
engine was originally designed; and
[
(e)
] 
(f)
 for a lease of a vehicle described in Subsection (2)(a) [
or
]
,
 (b), 
or (c),
 an
amount equal to the product of:
(i) the amount of tax credit the taxpayer would otherwise qualify to claim under
Subsection (2)(a) [
or
]
,
 (b)
, or (c)
 had the taxpayer purchased the vehicle, except that the
purchase price described in Subsection (2)(a)(i)(B) [
or
]
,
 (2)(b)(ii)
, or (2)(c)(ii)
 is considered to
be the value of the vehicle at the beginning of the lease; and
(ii) a percentage calculated by:
(A) determining the difference between the value of the vehicle at the beginning of the
lease, as stated in the lease agreement, and the value of the vehicle at the end of the lease, as
stated in the lease agreement; and
(B) dividing the difference determined under Subsection (2)[
(e)
]
(f)
(ii)(A) by the value
of the vehicle at the beginning of the lease, as stated in the lease agreement.
(3) (a) The board shall:
(i) determine the amount of tax credit a taxpayer is allowed under this section; and
(ii) provide the taxpayer with a written certification of the amount of tax credit the
taxpayer is allowed under this section.
(b) A taxpayer shall provide proof of the purchase or lease of an item for which a tax
credit is allowed under this section by:
(i) providing proof to the board in the form the board requires by rule;
(ii) receiving a written statement from the board acknowledging receipt of the proof;
and
(iii) retaining the written statement described in Subsection (3)(b)(ii).
(c) A taxpayer shall retain the written certification described in Subsection (3)(a)(ii).
(4) Except as provided by Subsection (5), the tax credit under this section is allowed
only:
(a) against a tax owed under this chapter or Chapter 8, Gross Receipts Tax on Certain
Corporations Not Required to Pay Corporate Franchise or Income Tax Act, in the taxable year
by the taxpayer;
(b) for the taxable year in which a vehicle described in Subsection (2)(a) [
or
]
,
 (b)
, or
(c)
 is purchased, a vehicle described in Subsection (2)[
(e)
]
(f)
 is leased, or conversion
equipment described in Subsection (2)[
(c)
]
(d)
 or [
(d)
] 
(e)
 is installed; and
(c) once per vehicle.
(5) A taxpayer may not assign a tax credit under this section to another person.
(6) If the amount of a tax credit claimed by a taxpayer under this section exceeds the
taxpayer's tax liability under this chapter or Chapter 8, Gross Receipts Tax on Certain
Corporations Not Required to Pay Corporate Franchise or Income Tax Act, for a taxable year,
the amount of the tax credit exceeding the tax liability may be carried forward for a period that
does not exceed the next five taxable years.
(7) In accordance with any rules prescribed by the commission under Subsection (8),
the commission shall transfer at least annually from the General Fund into the Education Fund
the amount by which the amount of tax credit claimed under this section for a taxable year
exceeds $500,000.
(8) In accordance with Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act, the
commission may make rules for making a transfer from the General Fund into the Education
Fund as required by Subsection (7).
Section 2. Section 
59-10-1009
 is amended to read:
59-10-1009.
Definitions -- Tax credits related to energy efficient vehicles.
(1) As used in this section:
(a) "Air quality standards" means that a vehicle's emissions are equal to or cleaner than
the standards established in bin 4 in Table S04-1, of 40 C.F.R. 86.1811-04(c)(6).
(b) "Board" means the Air Quality Board created in Title 19, Chapter 2, Air
Conservation Act.
(c) "Certified by the board" means that:
(i) a motor vehicle on which conversion equipment has been installed meets the
following criteria:
(A) before the installation of conversion equipment, the vehicle does not exceed the
emission cut points for a transient test driving cycle, as specified in 40 C.F.R. Part 51,
Appendix E to Subpart S, or an equivalent test for the make, model, and year of the vehicle;
and
(B) as a result of the installation of conversion equipment on the motor vehicle, the
motor vehicle has reduced emissions; or
(ii) special mobile equipment on which conversion equipment has been installed has
reduced emissions.
(d) "Clean fuel grant" means a grant a claimant, estate, or trust receives under Title 19,
Chapter 1, Part 4, Clean Fuels and Vehicle Technology Program Act, for reimbursement of a
portion of the incremental cost of the OEM vehicle or the cost of conversion equipment.
(e) "Conversion equipment" means equipment [
referred to
] 
described
 in Subsection
(2)[
(c)
]
(d)
 or [
(d)
] 
(e)
.
(f) "OEM vehicle" has the same meaning as in Section 
19-1-402
.
(g) "Original purchase" means the purchase of a vehicle that has never been titled or
registered and has been driven less than 7,500 miles.
(h) "Qualifying electric motorcycle" means a vehicle that:
(i) has a seat or saddle for the use of the rider;
(ii) is designed to travel with not more than three wheels in contact with the ground;
(iii) may lawfully be operated on a freeway, as defined in Section 
41-6a-102
;
(iv) is not fueled by natural gas;
(v) is fueled by electricity only; and
(vi) is an OEM vehicle except that the vehicle is fueled by a fuel described in
Subsection (1)(h)(v).
[
(h)
] 
(i)
 "Qualifying electric vehicle" means a vehicle that:
(i) meets air quality standards;
(ii) is not fueled by natural gas;
(iii) is fueled by electricity only; and
(iv) is an OEM vehicle except that the vehicle is fueled by a fuel described in
Subsection (1)[
(h)
]
(i)
(iii).
[
(i)
] 
(j)
 "Qualifying plug-in hybrid vehicle" means a vehicle that:
(i) meets air quality standards;
(ii) is not fueled by natural gas or propane;
(iii) has a battery capacity that meets or exceeds the battery capacity described in
Section 30D(b)(3), Internal Revenue Code; and
(iv) is fueled by a combination of electricity and:
(A) diesel fuel;
(B) gasoline; or
(C) a mixture of gasoline and ethanol.
[
(j)
] 
(k)
 "Reduced emissions" means:
(i) for purposes of a motor vehicle on which conversion equipment has been installed,
that the motor vehicle's emissions of regulated pollutants, when operating on a fuel listed in
Subsection (2)[
(d)
]
(e)
(i) or (ii), is less than the emissions were before the installation of the
conversion equipment, as demonstrated by:
(A) certification of the conversion equipment by the federal Environmental Protection
Agency or by a state that has certification standards recognized by the board;
(B) testing the motor vehicle, before and after installation of the conversion equipment,
in accordance with 40 C.F.R. Part 86, Control of Emissions from New and In-use Highway
Vehicles and Engines, using all fuel the motor vehicle is capable of using;
(C) for a retrofit natural gas vehicle that is retrofit in accordance with Section
19-1-406
, testing that as a result of the retrofit, the retrofit natural gas vehicle satisfies the
emission standards applicable under Section 
19-1-406
; or
(D) any other test or standard recognized by board rule, made in accordance with Title
63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act; or
(ii) for purposes of special mobile equipment on which conversion equipment has been
installed, that the special mobile equipment's emissions of regulated pollutants, when operating
on [
fuels
] 
a fuel
 listed in Subsection (2)[
(d)
]
(e)
(i) or (ii), is less than the emissions were before
the installation of conversion equipment, as demonstrated by:
(A) certification of the conversion equipment by the federal Environmental Protection
Agency or by a state that has certification standards recognized by the board; or
(B) any other test or standard recognized by board rule, made in accordance with Title
63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act.
[
(k)
] 
(l)
 "Special mobile equipment":
(i) means any mobile equipment or vehicle not designed or used primarily for the
transportation of persons or property; and
(ii) includes construction or maintenance equipment.
(2) For the taxable year beginning on or after January 1, 2015, but beginning on or
before December 31, 2015, a claimant, estate, or trust may claim a nonrefundable tax credit
against tax otherwise due under this chapter in an amount equal to:
(a) (i) for the original purchase of a new qualifying electric vehicle that is registered in
this state, the lesser of:
(A) $1,500; or
(B) 35% of the purchase price of the vehicle; or
(ii) for the original purchase of a new qualifying plug-in hybrid vehicle that is
registered in this state, $1,000;
(b) for the original purchase of a new vehicle fueled by natural gas or propane that is
registered in this state, the lesser of:
(i) $1,500; or
(ii) 35% of the purchase price of the vehicle;
(c) for the original purchase of a new qualifying electric motorcycle that is registered in
this state, the lesser of:
(i) $750; or
(ii) 35% of the purchase price of the vehicle;
[
(c)
] 
(d)
 50% of the cost of equipment for conversion, if certified by the board, of a
motor vehicle registered in this state minus the amount of any clean fuel conversion grant
received, up to a maximum tax credit of $1,500 per vehicle, if the motor vehicle:
(i) is to be fueled by propane, natural gas, or electricity;
(ii) is to be fueled by other fuel the board determines annually on or before July 1 to be
at least as effective in reducing air pollution as fuels under Subsection (2)[
(c)
]
(d)
(i); or
(iii) will meet the federal clean fuel vehicle standards in the federal Clean Air Act
Amendments of 1990, 42 U.S.C. Sec. 7521 et seq.;
[
(d)
] 
(e)
 50% of the cost of equipment for conversion, if certified by the board, of a
special mobile equipment engine minus the amount of any clean fuel conversion grant
received, up to a maximum tax credit of $1,000 per special mobile equipment engine, if the
special mobile equipment is to be fueled by:
(i) propane, natural gas, or electricity; or
(ii) other fuel the board determines annually on or before July 1 to be:
(A) at least as effective in reducing air pollution as the fuels under Subsection
(2)[
(d)
]
(e)
(i); or
(B) substantially more effective in reducing air pollution than the fuel for which the
engine was originally designed; and
[
(e)
] 
(f)
 for a lease of a vehicle described in Subsection (2)(a) [
or
]
,
 (b), 
or (c),
 an
amount equal to the product of:
(i) the amount of tax credit the claimant, estate, or trust would otherwise qualify to
claim under Subsection (2)(a) [
or
]
,
 (b)
, or (c)
 had the claimant, estate, or trust purchased the
vehicle, except that the purchase price described in Subsection (2)(a)(i)(B) [
or
]
,
 (2)(b)(ii)
, or
(2)(c)(ii)
 is considered to be the value of the vehicle at the beginning of the lease; and
(ii) a percentage calculated by:
(A) determining the difference between the value of the vehicle at the beginning of the
lease, as stated in the lease agreement, and the value of the vehicle at the end of the lease, as
stated in the lease agreement; and
(B) dividing the difference determined under Subsection (2)[
(e)
]
(f)
(ii)(A) by the value
of the vehicle at the beginning of the lease, as stated in the lease agreement.
(3) (a) The board shall:
(i) determine the amount of tax credit a claimant, estate, or trust is allowed under this
section; and
(ii) provide the claimant, estate, or trust with a written certification of the amount of
tax credit the claimant, estate, or trust is allowed under this section.
(b) A claimant, estate, or trust shall provide proof of the purchase or lease of an item
for which a tax credit is allowed under this section by:
(i) providing proof to the board in the form the board requires by rule;
(ii) receiving a written statement from the board acknowledging receipt of the proof;
and
(iii) retaining the written statement described in Subsection (3)(b)(ii).
(c) A claimant, estate, or trust shall retain the written certification described in
Subsection (3)(a)(ii).
(4) Except as provided by Subsection (5), the tax credit under this section is allowed
only:
(a) against a tax owed under this chapter in the taxable year by the claimant, estate, or
trust;
(b) for the taxable year in which a vehicle described in Subsection (2)(a) [
or
]
,
 (b)
, or
(c)
 is purchased, a vehicle described in Subsection (2)[
(e)
]
(f)
 is leased, or conversion
equipment described in Subsection (2)[
(c)
]
(d)
 or [
(d)
] 
(e)
 is installed; and
(c) once per vehicle.
(5) A claimant, estate, or trust may not assign a tax credit under this section to another
person.
(6) If the amount of a tax credit claimed by a claimant, estate, or trust under this
section exceeds the claimant's, estate's, or trust's tax liability under this chapter for a taxable
year, the amount of the tax credit exceeding the tax liability may be carried forward for a period
that does not exceed the next five taxable years.
(7) In accordance with any rules prescribed by the commission under Subsection (8),
the commission shall transfer at least annually from the General Fund into the Education Fund
the amount by which the amount of tax credit claimed under this section for a taxable year
exceeds $500,000.
(8) In accordance with Title 63G, Chapter 3, Utah Administrative Rulemaking Act, the
commission may make rules for making a transfer from the General Fund into the Education
Fund as required by Subsection (7).
Section 3. 
Retrospective operation.
This bill has retrospective operation for a taxable year beginning on or after January 1,
2015.
Legislative Review Note
 as of 2-4-15 11:57 AM
Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel