SWM Fiscal Year 2009 :: Outside Sections


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Quality in Health Professions Trust Fund II

SECTION 5. Said section 35X of said chapter 10, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following subsection:-

(d) Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, once a fee has been increased under subsection (c), the total amount of any further increase in the fee or any new fee created for obtaining or renewing a license, certificate, registration, permit or authority issued by a board within the department of public health, excluding the board of registration in medicine, adopted by the secretary of administration and finance, following a public hearing, shall be deposited in the fund.

SECTION 7. Chapter 10 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 69 the following section:-

Section 69A. (a) There shall be established and set up on the books of the commonwealth a separate fund to be known as the Bay State Competitiveness Investment Fund. The comptroller shall administer the fund and shall be its trustee. There shall be credited to the fund amounts transferred under clause (b) of section 5C of chapter 29 and amounts deposited from other sources by law.

(b) At the end of each fiscal year, the comptroller shall transfer from the fund, without further appropriation, the following amounts:

(1) not more than $25,000,000 to the Massachusetts Life Sciences Investment Fund established by section 5 of chapter 23I; and

(2) after making the transfer required by clause (1), the balance as follows, but if the balance in the fund is insufficient the following transfer shall be proportionately reduced accordingly: $7,000,000 to the Massachusetts Cultural Facilities Fund, established by section 42 of chapter 23G.

Medicare Part D and Prescription Advantage I

SECTION 8. Subsection (k) of section 39 of chapter 19A of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2006 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the first sentence and inserting in place thereof the following sentence:- In order to maintain the fiscal viability of the program, the department shall adjust cost sharing required of enrollees in the form of co-payments, premiums and deductibles, or any combination of these forms, to reflect price trends for outpatient prescription drugs, as determined by the secretary.

Medicare Part D and Prescription Advantage II

SECTION 9. Said section 39 of said chapter 19A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following 3 subsections:-

(t) In addition to the eligibility requirements set forth in this section, to be considered eligible for the program, individuals who receive Medicare and are applying for, or are then enrolled in, the program shall also be enrolled in a Medicare prescription drug plan, a Medicare Advantage prescription drug plan, or a plan which provides creditable prescription drug coverage as defined by section 104 of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003, in this section called MMA, and which provides coverage of the cost of prescription drugs actuarially equal to or better than that provided by Medicare Part D, in this section called a creditable coverage plan.

(u) In addition to the eligibility requirements set forth in this section, to be considered eligible for the program, individuals who receive Medicare and are applying for, or are then enrolled in, the program, who may qualify for the low-income subsidy provided under MMA Subpart P - Premiums and cost-sharing subsidies for low-income individuals, shall apply for those subsidies. To the extent permitted by MMA and regulations adopted under it and all other applicable federal law, the program may apply on behalf of a member for enrollment into a Medicare prescription drug plan or for the low-income subsidy provided under MMA and may receive information about the member's eligibility and enrollment status necessary for the operation of the program.

(v) For enrollees who qualify for enrollment in a Medicare Part D plan, the program shall provide a supplemental source of financial assistance for prescription drug costs, in this section called supplemental assistance, in lieu of the catastrophic prescription drug coverage provided under this section. The program shall provide supplemental assistance for premiums, deductibles, payments and co-payments required by a Medicare prescription drug plan or Medicare Advantage prescription drug plan, and shall provide supplemental assistance for deductibles, payments and co-payments required by a creditable coverage plan. The department may take steps for the coordination of these benefits. The department shall establish the amount of the supplemental assistance it will provide enrollees based on a sliding income scale and the coverage provided by the enrollees' Medicare prescription drug plan, Medicare Advantage prescription drug plan or creditable coverage plan. In addition to the eligibility requirements set forth in this section, to be considered eligible for the program, an individual shall have a household income of less than 500 per cent of the poverty guidelines updated periodically in the Federal Register by the United States Department of Health and Human Services under 42 U.S.C. section 9902(2). Residents of the commonwealth who are not eligible for Medicare shall continue to be eligible for the program under this section.

Railroad Bridge Safety

SECTION 11. Section 12F of chapter 25 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding the following paragraph:-

The commission may make an assessment against each railroad corporation or railway company under the jurisdictional control of the department, based upon the intrastate operating revenues as shown in the annual report of each such company to the department. The assessments shall be made at a rate sufficient to collect a maximum of $500,000 annually, as shall be determined and certified annually by the commission as sufficient to reimburse the commonwealth for funds appropriated by the general court for costs incurred by the transportation division related to railroad bridge inspections pursuant to section 83 of chapter 159, including administrative costs and for the cost of fringe benefits as established by the commissioner of administration pursuant to section 5D of chapter 29, including group life and health insurance, retirement benefits, paid vacations, holidays and sick leave. The funds may be used to compensate consultants in hearings on petitions filed by companies subject to assessment under this section and for consultants for the purpose of railroad bridge inspections. Each company shall pay the amount assessed against it within 30 days after the date of the notice of assessment from the department. Such assessments shall be collected by the department and credited to the General Fund. Any funds unexpended in any fiscal year for the purposes for which such assessments were made shall be credited against the assessment to be made in the following fiscal year and the assessment in the following fiscal year shall be reduced by any such unexpended amount.

Consolidated Net Surplus Distribution II

SECTION 12. Chapter 29 of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out section 5C, as appearing in the 2006 Official Edition, and inserting in place thereof the following section:-

Section 5C. The comptroller shall annually, on or before October 31, certify to the secretary of administration and finance the amount of the consolidated net surplus in the budgetary funds at the close of the preceding fiscal year. The amounts so certified shall be disposed as follows:

(a) an amount equal to 1/2 of 1 per cent of the total revenue from taxes in the preceding fiscal year shall be available to be used as revenue for the current fiscal year and 1/2 of 1 per cent of the total revenue from taxes in the preceding fiscal year shall be transferred to the Commonwealth Stabilization Fund;

(b) an amount of not more than $50,000,000 shall be transferred to the Bay State Competitiveness Investment Fund established in section 69A of chapter 10; and

(c) any remaining amount of the consolidated net surplus after amounts made available in clauses (a) and (b) shall be transferred to the Commonwealth Stabilization Fund.

All transfers specified in this section shall be made from the undesignated fund balances in the budgetary funds proportionally from those undesignated fund balances, but no such transfer shall cause a deficit in any of those funds. Before certifying the consolidated net surplus in accordance with this section, the comptroller shall, to the extent possible, eliminate deficits in any fund contributing to the surplus by transferring positive fund balances from any other fund contributing to the surplus.

SECTION 18. Chapter 60A of the General Laws is hereby amended by adding the following section:-

Section 9. Upon acceptance of this section by a municipality and notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter to the contrary, any excise due under this chapter by a member of the Massachusetts National Guard or reservist or a dependent of a member of the Massachusetts National Guard or reservist shall be deferred while that member is on active service outside the commonwealth and for 180 days after completion of that service. No interest or penalties shall be assessed for any period before the expiration of the 180 days.

SECTION 21. Chapter 62B of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 13 the following section:-

Section 13A. The commissioner may require a taxpayer, or a person paying, crediting or allocating an amount to a taxpayer, to make estimated tax payments on amounts the taxpayer is reasonably likely to receive. The commissioner may require a minimum estimated tax payment and may require payment on or before the date of receipt of income. In exercising this authority, the commissioner may require a nonresident taxpayer to estimate and pay, on or before the time of sale, the income tax liability on the gain from the sale or transfer of real property in the commonwealth. The commissioner may issue regulations governing the administration of this section. In the event of a sale, transfer or disposition of property, a lien in the amount of any required estimated payment shall arise with regard to the property, to the extent provided by regulation, if such a required estimated tax payment is not timely made.

SECTION 22. Section 16 of chapter 62C of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2006 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after subsection (c) the following subsection:-

(c½) Every licensee under section 7B of chapter 64C shall, on or before the twentieth day of each calendar month or on or before the twentieth day of the month following each calendar quarter, as the commissioner shall require, file with the commissioner a return for each place of business maintained, stating the quantity of cigars and smoking tobacco sold by such licensee in the commonwealth during the preceding calendar month or quarter, as the case may be, and such return shall contain or be accompanied by such further information as the commissioner shall require. If a licensee ceases to sell cigars and smoking tobacco within the commonwealth, he shall immediately file with the commissioner a return for the period ending with such cessation.

SECTION 24. Section 47A of said chapter 62C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out subsection (d) and inserting in place thereof the following 2 subsections:-

(d) If the commissioner determines from the information furnished pursuant to this section, or otherwise, that any person who holds a license or certificate of authority issued by any such agency or who has agreed to furnish goods, services or real estate space to any such agency has neglected or refused to file any returns or to pay any tax required under this chapter and that such person has not filed in good faith a pending application for abatement of such tax or a pending petition before the appellate tax board contesting such tax or entered a payment agreement with which the taxpayer is fully compliant, or has been penalized pursuant to section 9 of chapter 62E for failure to comply with said chapter 62E relating to reporting of employees and contractors, or has been penalized pursuant to paragraph (3) of subsection (f) of section 12 of chapter 119A for failure to comply with said chapter 119A relating to withholding and remitting child support, the commissioner shall notify such agency and such person in writing. Upon the written request of the commissioner, the agency, department, board, commission, division, authority, district or other agency of the commonwealth, shall promptly revoke or suspend that license or certificate of authority. Any license or certificate of authority suspended or revoked under this section shall not be reissued or renewed until the agency receives a certificate issued by the commissioner that the licensee is in good standing with respect to all returns due and taxes payable to the commissioner as of the date of issuance of the certificate, including all taxes and returns referenced in the initial notification or, if the licensee has been penalized for failure to comply with the provisions relating to reporting of employees and contractors under said chapter 62E or withholding and remitting child support under said chapter 119A, a certificate issued by the commissioner that the licensee is in compliance with those provisions.

(e) Where a license revocation, suspension or nonrenewal is based upon nonpayment of an assessed tax administered under this chapter, the licensee's sole right of appeal and to a hearing shall be pursuant to and within the time limitations of this chapter. The commissioner shall give the licensee not less than 30 days notice of any proposed action, during which time the licensee may enter into a payment agreement with the commissioner or may file a good faith abatement application within the time periods determined under section 37. Such an abatement application shall stay a proposed license revocation, suspension, or nonrenewal until the amount of disputed tax due is finally determined. A licensee who is beyond the time limitations in section 37 but who disputes that he is liable for the assessment and is unable to resolve that issue with the commissioner during the 30-day period may appeal the proposed revocation, suspension or nonrenewal by filing a civil action under section 14 of chapter 30A. The scope of the appeal shall be limited to assertions of mistake or verification of payments made and shall not include determination or redetermination of the proper amount of tax assessed or any other issues appropriately raised through a timely filed abatement under section 37. Any stay of the proposed revocation, suspension or nonrenewal pending resolution of the appeal shall be within the discretion of the court.

SECTION 25. Said chapter 62C is hereby further amended by inserting after said section 47A the following section:-

Section 47B. (a) If the commissioner determines that any person who holds a driver's license, learner's permit, right to operate a motor vehicle or certificate of motor vehicle registration has neglected or refused to file any returns or to pay any tax required under this chapter and that the person has not filed in good faith a pending application for abatement of such tax or a pending petition before the appellate tax board contesting such tax or entered a payment agreement with which the taxpayer is fully compliant, the commissioner shall notify the registry of motor vehicles and the person in writing. Upon the written request of the commissioner, the registry shall promptly suspend or revoke or prohibit issuance or renewal of the license, learner's permit, right to operate a motor vehicle, or certificate of motor vehicle registration of the taxpayer. Any license, learner's permit, right to operate a motor vehicle or certificate of motor vehicle registration suspended or revoked under this section shall not be reissued or renewed until the registry receives a certificate issued by the commissioner that the licensee is in good standing with respect to all returns due and taxes payable to the commissioner as of the date of issuance of the certificate, including all taxes and returns referenced in the initial notification.

(b) Where a license revocation, suspension or nonrenewal is based upon nonpayment of an assessed tax administered under this chapter, the licensee's sole right of appeal and to a hearing shall be pursuant to and within the time limitations of this chapter. The commissioner shall give the licensee not less than 30 days notice of any proposed action, during which time the licensee may enter into a payment agreement with the commissioner or may file a good faith abatement application within the time periods determined under section 37. Such an abatement application shall stay a proposed license revocation, suspension, or nonrenewal until the amount of disputed tax due is finally determined. A licensee who is beyond the time limitations in said section 37 but who disputes that he is liable for the assessment and is unable to resolve that issue with the commissioner during the 30-day period may appeal the proposed revocation, suspension or nonrenewal by filing a civil action as provided in section 14 of chapter 30A. The scope of the appeal shall be limited to assertions of mistake or verification of payments made and shall not include determination or redetermination of the proper amount of tax assessed or any other issues appropriately raised through a timely filed abatement under said section 37. Any stay of the proposed revocation, suspension or nonrenewal pending resolution of the appeal shall be within the discretion of the court.

SECTION 26. Section 49A of said chapter 62C, as appearing in the 2006 Official Edition, is hereby amended by adding the following subsection:-

(f) Where a license revocation, suspension or nonrenewal is based upon nonpayment of an assessed tax administered under this chapter, the licensee's sole right of appeal and to a hearing shall be pursuant to and within the time limitations of this chapter. The commissioner shall give the licensee not less than 30 days notice of any proposed action, during which time the licensee may enter into a payment agreement with the commissioner or may file a good faith abatement application within the time periods determined under section 37. Such an abatement application shall stay a proposed license revocation, suspension or nonrenewal until the amount of disputed tax due is finally determined. A licensee who is beyond the time limitations in said section 37 but who disputes that he is liable for the assessment and is unable to resolve that issue with the commissioner during the 30-day period may appeal the proposed revocation, suspension or nonrenewal by filing a civil action as provided in section 14 of chapter 30A. The scope of the appeal shall be limited to assertions of mistake or verification of payments made and shall not include determination or redetermination of the proper amount of tax assessed or any other issues appropriately raised through a timely filed abatement under said section 37. Any stay of the proposed revocation, suspension or nonrenewal pending resolution of the appeal shall be within the discretion of the court.

SECTION 28. Section 65 of said chapter 62C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the first paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:-

Taxes shall be collected: (i) within 10 years after the assessment of the tax; (ii) within any further period after that 10-year period during which the taxes remain unpaid but only against any real or personal property of the taxpayer to which a tax lien has attached and for which a notice of lien has been filed or recorded under section 50 in favor of the commonwealth in accordance with applicable state or federal law within 10 years after the assessment of the tax; (iii) before the expiration of any period of collection agreed upon in writing by the commissioner and the taxpayer before the expiration of that 10-year period; or (iv) if there is a release of levy under section 64 after that 10-year period, then before that release. The period so agreed upon may be extended by subsequent agreements in writing made before the expiration of the period previously agreed upon. When any question relative to such taxes is pending before any agency or court at the end of that 10-year period, the commissioner's right to collect any tax due shall continue until 1 year after the final determination of that question.

SECTION 33. Said section 67 of said chapter 62C, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the seventh paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:-

The secretary of administration and finance shall annually determine the fees for licenses and renewals thereof under section 3B of chapter 7 in the following categories: distributors; unclassified importers; unclassified exporters; manufacturers; wholesalers; vending machine operators; unclassified acquirers; transportation companies; retailers; cigar distributors; cigar retailers; user-sellers; suppliers; users of special fuels; and motor carriers or their vehicles; provided, however, that in case of a manufacturer, wholesaler, cigar distributor or vending machine operator who maintains more than 1 place of business, the fee for each additional place of business shall be one-half of the above determined fee. No fee or part thereof, shall be refunded by reason of relinquishment, suspension or revocation of a license.

EOHHS Debt Recovery by Tax Refund Intercept II

SECTION 35. Said section 1 of said chapter 62D is hereby further amended by inserting after the word "assistance", in line 17, as so appearing, the following words: - or the executive office of health and human services.

EOHHS Debt Recovery by Tax Refund Intercept III

SECTION 36. Said section 1 of said chapter 62D is hereby further amended by striking out , in lines 57 to 61, inclusive, as so appearing, the words "for costs incurred as a result of noncompliance by that individual with an order to provide coverage for the cost of health services to a child eligible for assistance under Title XIX of the Social Security Act, as further described in section 23 of chapter 118E" and inserting in place thereof the following words:- or the executive office of health and human services.

SECTION 37. Chapter 63B of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 2 the following section:-

Section 2A. The commissioner may require a taxpayer, or a person paying, crediting or allocating an amount to a taxpayer, to make estimated tax payments on amounts the taxpayer is reasonably likely to receive. The commissioner may require a minimum estimated tax payment and may require payment on or before the date of receipt of income. In exercising this authority, the commissioner may require a nonresident taxpayer to estimate and pay, on or before the time of sale, the tax liability on the gain from the sale or transfer of real property in the commonwealth. The commissioner may issue regulations governing the administration of this section. In the event of a sale, transfer or disposition of property, a lien in the amount of any required estimated payment shall arise with regard to the property, to the extent provided by regulation, if such a required estimated tax payment is not timely made.