House File 2363      


                                          HOUSE FILE       
                                          BY  COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS

                                          (SUCCESSOR TO HF 2229)
                                          (COMPANION TO SF 2107 BY IVERSON)


       Passed House,  Date               Passed Senate, Date             
       Vote:  Ayes        Nays           Vote:  Ayes        Nays         
                    Approved                            

                                         A BILL FOR

     1 An Act providing for an annual tax levy on real property used in
     2    gaming operations and providing an effective date.
     3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
     4 TLSB 6367HV 80
     5 ec/pj/5

PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  Section 99D.14, subsection 6, Code 2003, is
  1  2 amended to read as follows:
  1  3    6.  Real property used in the operation of a racetrack or
  1  4 racetrack enclosure which is exempt from property taxation
  1  5 under another provision of the law, including being exempt
  1  6 because it is owned by a city, county, state, or charitable or
  1  7 nonprofit entity, may be subject to real property taxation by
  1  8 any taxing district, including the state, in which the real
  1  9 property used in the operation of the racetrack or racetrack
  1 10 enclosure is located.  To subject such real property to
  1 11 taxation, the taxing authority of the a local taxing district
  1 12 shall pass a resolution imposing the tax and, if the
  1 13 resolution is passed prior to September 1, 1997, shall notify
  1 14 the local assessor and the owner of record of the real
  1 15 property by September 1, 1997, preceding the fiscal year in
  1 16 which the real property taxes are due and payable.  The
  1 17 assessed value shall be determined and notice of the assessed
  1 18 value shall be provided to the county auditor by the local
  1 19 assessor by October 15, 1997, and the owner may protest the
  1 20 assessed value to the local board of review by December 1,
  1 21 1997.  For resolutions passed on or after September 1, 1997,
  1 22 the taxing authority shall notify the local assessor and owner
  1 23 of record prior to the next assessment year and the valuation
  1 24 and appeal shall be done in the manner and time as for other
  1 25 valuations.  For the state, the real property shall be subject
  1 26 to taxation as provided in section 444.24.  Property taxes due
  1 27 as a result of this subsection shall be paid to the county
  1 28 treasurer in the manner and time as other property taxes.  The
  1 29 county treasurer shall remit the tax revenue to those taxing
  1 30 authorities imposing the property tax under this subsection.
  1 31 Real property subject to tax as provided in this subsection
  1 32 shall continue to be taxed until such time as the taxing
  1 33 authority of the taxing district repeals the resolution
  1 34 subjecting the property to taxation or the state repeals the
  1 35 statute subjecting the property to taxation by the state.
  2  1    Sec. 2.  NEW SECTION.  444.24  GAMING OPERATIONS REAL
  2  2 PROPERTY == ANNUAL LEVY.
  2  3    1.  Gaming operations real property shall be assessed an
  2  4 annual levy pursuant to the requirements of this section and
  2  5 the amounts collected shall be deposited in the general fund
  2  6 of the state.
  2  7    2.  In each year the director of revenue shall fix the rate
  2  8 to be levied per square foot of gaming operations real
  2  9 property necessary to raise the amounts provided in subsection
  2 10 3 for general state purposes.  The director of revenue shall
  2 11 certify the rate so fixed to the auditor of each applicable
  2 12 county.
  2 13    3.  a.  The amounts required to be raised from the levy on
  2 14 gaming operations real property that is used by a licensee as
  2 15 gaming floor shall be determined as follows:
  2 16    (1)  If the target resident population of the county where
  2 17 the gaming operations real property is located is less than
  2 18 one hundred thousand, the amount to be raised shall be an
  2 19 initial payment of twenty=five million dollars, and five
  2 20 million dollars for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2004,
  2 21 and each fiscal year thereafter.
  2 22    (2)  If the target resident population of the county where
  2 23 the gaming operations real property is located is one hundred
  2 24 thousand or more, but less than three hundred thousand, the
  2 25 amount to be raised shall be an initial payment of eighty
  2 26 million dollars, and twenty million dollars for the fiscal
  2 27 year beginning July 1, 2004, and each fiscal year thereafter.
  2 28    (3)  If the target resident population of the county where
  2 29 the gaming operations real property is located is three
  2 30 hundred thousand or more, the amount to be raised shall be an
  2 31 initial payment of ninety=five million dollars for the fiscal
  2 32 year beginning July 1, 2004, and twenty=five million dollars
  2 33 each fiscal year thereafter.
  2 34    b.  The amount levied on the gaming operations real
  2 35 property that is not used by the licensee as gaming floor
  3  1 shall be determined as follows:
  3  2    (1)  If the target resident population of the county where
  3  3 the gaming operations real property is located is less than
  3  4 one hundred thousand, the amount to be raised shall be an
  3  5 initial payment of one hundred thousand dollars, and thirty=
  3  6 three thousand two hundred fifty dollars for the fiscal year
  3  7 beginning July 1, 2004, and each fiscal year thereafter.
  3  8    (2)  If the target resident population of the county where
  3  9 the gaming operations real property is located is one hundred
  3 10 thousand or more, but less than three hundred thousand, the
  3 11 amount to be raised shall be an initial payment of three
  3 12 hundred fifty thousand dollars, and one hundred thirty=three
  3 13 thousand five hundred dollars for the fiscal year beginning
  3 14 July 1, 2004, and each fiscal year thereafter.
  3 15    (3)  If the target resident population of the county where
  3 16 the gaming operations real property is located is three
  3 17 hundred thousand or more, the amount to be raised shall be an
  3 18 initial payment of two million three hundred thousand dollars,
  3 19 and one million dollars for the fiscal year beginning July 1,
  3 20 2004, and each fiscal year thereafter.
  3 21    4.  For purposes of this section:
  3 22    a.  "Gaming operations real property" means real property
  3 23 owned or occupied by a licensee under chapter 99D or 99F and
  3 24 used in or related to the operation of gambling games, racing,
  3 25 or pari=mutuel wagering.  "Gaming operations real property"
  3 26 does not mean hotels, restaurants or bars, convention centers,
  3 27 theaters, or meeting rooms.
  3 28    b.  "Target resident population of the county" means the
  3 29 total population, based upon the most recent federal decennial
  3 30 census, of the greater of the population of the county in
  3 31 which the gaming operations real property is located or the
  3 32 population of each county within this state included in the
  3 33 federally designated metropolitan statistical area that
  3 34 includes the county in which the gaming operations real
  3 35 property is located, as designated as of January 1, 2004.
  4  1    Sec. 3.  TRANSITION PROVISIONS == GAMING OPERATIONS REAL
  4  2 PROPERTY ANNUAL LEVY.  Notwithstanding any provision of law to
  4  3 the contrary, for purposes of collecting the initial payments
  4  4 of the annual levy pursuant to section 444.24, the director of
  4  5 revenue shall, within thirty days of the effective date of
  4  6 this Act, fix the rate to be levied upon the square footage of
  4  7 the gaming operations real property sufficient to raise the
  4  8 amounts specified as the initial payments in section 444.24,
  4  9 and shall notify in writing the owner of the real property of
  4 10 the rate to be applied and the tax to be assessed.  The owner
  4 11 of the real property shall pay the assessed tax within thirty
  4 12 days of receiving notice from the director of revenue.
  4 13    Sec. 4.  EFFECTIVE DATE.  This Act, being deemed of
  4 14 immediate importance, takes effect upon enactment.
  4 15                           EXPLANATION
  4 16    This bill provides for an annual property tax levy on
  4 17 gaming operations real property.
  4 18    Code section 99D.14, subsection 6, which permits taxing
  4 19 authorities to impose property taxes on real property used in
  4 20 the operation of a racetrack, is amended to specifically
  4 21 provide for the state to impose property taxes pursuant to the
  4 22 requirements of new Code section 444.24 as created in the
  4 23 bill.
  4 24    New Code section 444.24 provides for an annual tax levy on
  4 25 gaming operations real property with receipts from the levy to
  4 26 be deposited in the general fund of the state.  The bill
  4 27 provides that the director of revenue shall fix the levy rate
  4 28 to be imposed on the real property necessary to raise the
  4 29 amounts specified and shall then certify the rate to the
  4 30 applicable county auditor.  The bill provides that the amounts
  4 31 to be raised shall depend on the target resident population of
  4 32 the county where the gaming operations real property is
  4 33 located and on whether the gaming operations real property is
  4 34 gaming floor or not.
  4 35    "Gaming operations real property" is defined by the bill as
  5  1 real property owned or occupied by a licensee under Code
  5  2 chapter 99D or 99F and used in or related to the operation of
  5  3 gambling games, racing, or pari=mutuel wagering but does not
  5  4 include hotels, restaurants or bars, convention centers,
  5  5 theaters, or meeting rooms.
  5  6    The bill also defines "target resident population of the
  5  7 county" as the greater of the population of the county in
  5  8 which the racetrack is located or the population of each
  5  9 county in this state, including the county in which the
  5 10 racetrack is located, that is included in a federal
  5 11 metropolitan statistical area.
  5 12    The bill provides that if the population where the gaming
  5 13 operations real property is located is less than 100,000, the
  5 14 amount to be raised on real property that is gaming floor
  5 15 shall be an initial payment of $25 million, and $5 million for
  5 16 fiscal year 2004=2005 and each fiscal year thereafter.  In
  5 17 addition, the amount to be raised on real property that is not
  5 18 gaming floor shall be an initial payment of $100,000, and
  5 19 $33,250 for fiscal year 2004=2005 and each fiscal year
  5 20 thereafter.
  5 21    If the population where the gaming operations real property
  5 22 is located is 100,000, but less than 300,000, the amount to be
  5 23 raised on real property that is gaming floor shall be an
  5 24 initial payment of $80 million, and $20 million for fiscal
  5 25 year 2004=2005 and each fiscal year thereafter.  In addition,
  5 26 the amount to be raised on real property that is not gaming
  5 27 floor shall be an initial payment of $350,000, and $133,500
  5 28 for fiscal year 2004=2005 and each fiscal year thereafter.
  5 29    The bill provides that if the population where the gaming
  5 30 operations real property is located is more than 300,000, the
  5 31 amount to be raised on real property that is gaming floor
  5 32 shall be an initial payment of $95 million, and $25 million
  5 33 for fiscal year 2004=2005 and each fiscal year thereafter.  In
  5 34 addition, the amount to be raised on real property that is not
  5 35 gaming floor shall be an initial payment of $2.3 million, and
  6  1 $1 million for fiscal year 2004=2005 and each fiscal year
  6  2 thereafter.
  6  3    The bill includes a transition provision for the initial
  6  4 payment of the annual levy.  The bill provides that the
  6  5 director of revenue shall notify the owner of the property of
  6  6 the tax to be assessed within 30 days of the effective date of
  6  7 the bill.  The bill then provides that the owner has 30 days
  6  8 to pay the tax following notice.
  6  9    The bill takes effect upon enactment.
  6 10 LSB 6367HV 80
  6 11 ec/pj/5