GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 1995

H	2 

HOUSE BILL 986
Committee Substitute Favorable 6/13/96

Short Title:  Reduce White Goods Tax.	(Public)

─────────────────────────────────────── 
Sponsors:

─────────────────────────────────────── 
Referred to: 

─────────────────────────────────────── 

April 24, 1995

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO REDUCE THE WHITE GOODS DISPOSAL TAX RATE BY APPROXIMATELY THIRTY-THREE PERCENT AND TO PROVIDE THAT WHITE GOODS TAX REVENUE THAT IS NOT NEEDED FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF DISCARDED WHITE GOODS MAY BE USED TO CLEAN UP ILLEGAL DUMP SITES.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1.  G.S. 105-187.21 reads as rewritten:
"§ 105-187.21.  (Effective until July 1, 1998) Tax imposed.
A privilege tax is imposed on a white goods retailer at a flat rate for each new white good that is sold by the retailer.  An excise tax is imposed on a new white good purchased outside the State for storage, use, or consumption in this State.  The rate of the privilege tax and the excise tax is three dollars ($3.00) if the new white good does not contain chlorofluorocarbon refrigerants and is seven dollars ($7.00) if the new white good contains chlorofluorocarbon refrigerants.  These taxes are in addition to all other taxes."
Sec. 2.  G.S. 130A-309.82 reads as rewritten:
"§ 130A-309.82.  (Repealed effective July 1, 1999) Use of disposal tax proceeds by counties.
Article 5C of Chapter 105 of the General Statutes imposes a tax on new white goods to provide funds for the management of discarded white goods.  A county must use proceeds of the tax distributed to it under that Article for the management of discarded white goods. If a county has a surplus of tax proceeds after reimbursing its costs of managing discarded white goods, then it may use the remainder of the tax proceeds for the cleanup of unmanaged illegal dump sites."
Sec. 3.  G.S. 130A-309.83 reads as rewritten:
"§ 130A-309.83.  (Repealed effective July 1, 1999) White Goods Management Account.
The White Goods Management Account is established within the Department.  The Account consists of revenue credited to the Account from the proceeds of the white goods disposal tax imposed by Article 5C of Chapter 105 of the General Statutes and any revenue credited to the Account as the result of the recovery by the State of part or all of the costs of cleaning up an unmanaged illegal dump site.
The Department shall use revenue in the Account to make grants to units of local government to assist them in managing discarded white goods and cleaning up unmanaged illegal dump sites.  The Department must make grants for the management of discarded white goods to all applicants who meet the grant criteria before it makes a grant for cleaning up unmanaged illegal dump sites. To administer the grants, the Department shall establish procedures for applying for a grant and the criteria for selecting among grant applicants.  The criteria for a grant to manage discarded white goods shall include the financial ability of a unit to manage white goods, the severity of a unit's white goods management problem, and the effort made by a unit to manage white goods within the resources available to it.  The criteria for a grant to clean up an unmanaged illegal dump site shall include the financial ability of the unit to clean up the site and the severity of the problem created by the site.
A unit of local government is not eligible for a grant to manage discarded white goods unless its costs of managing white goods for a six-month period preceding the date the unit files an application for a grant exceeded the amount the unit received during that period from the proceeds of the white goods disposal tax under G.S. 105-187.24.  The Department shall determine the six-month period to be used in determining who is eligible for a grant to manage discarded white goods.  A grant to a unit to manage discarded white goods may not exceed the unit's unreimbursed cost for the six-month period."
Sec. 4.  G.S. 105-187.24 reads as rewritten:
"§ 105-187.24.  (Effective until July 1, 1998) Use of tax proceeds.
The Secretary shall distribute the taxes collected under this Article, less the Department of Revenue's allowance for administrative expenses, in accordance with this section. The Secretary may retain the Department's cost of collection, not to exceed two hundred twenty-five thousand dollars ($225,000) a year, as reimbursement to the Department.
Each quarter, the Secretary shall credit eight percent (8%) of the net tax proceeds to the Solid Waste Management Trust Fund and shall credit twenty percent (20%) of the net tax proceeds to the White Goods Management Account. The Secretary shall distribute the remaining seventy-two percent (72%) of the net tax proceeds among the counties on a per capita basis according to the most recent annual population estimates certified to the Secretary by the State Planning Officer.
A county may use funds distributed to it under this section only as provided in G.S. 130A-309.82. A county that receives funds under this section and that has an interlocal agreement with another unit of local government under which the other unit provides for the disposal of solid waste for the county must transfer the amount received under this section to that other unit. A unit to which funds are transferred is subject to the same restrictions on use of the funds as the county."
Sec. 5.  G.S. 130A-309.12 reads as rewritten:
"§ 130A-309.12.  Solid Waste Management Trust Fund.
(a)	The Solid Waste Management Trust Fund is created and is to be administered by the Department for the purposes of:
(1)	Funding activities of the Department to promote waste reduction and recycling including but not limited to public education programs and technical assistance to units of local government;
(2)	Funding research on the solid waste stream in North Carolina;
(3)	Funding activities related to the development of secondary materials markets;
(4)	Providing funding for demonstration projects as provided by this Part; and
(5)	Providing funding for research by The University of North Carolina and independent nonprofit colleges and universities within the State which are accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools as provided by this Part.
(b)	(Effective until June 30, 1997) The Solid Waste Management Trust Fund shall consist of the following:
(1)	Funds appropriated by the General Assembly.
(2)	Contributions and grants from public or private sources.
(3)	Five percent (5%) of the proceeds of the scrap tire disposal tax imposed under Article 5B of Chapter 105 of the General Statutes.
(4)	(Repealed effective July 1, 1999) Eight percent (8%) of the proceeds of the white goods disposal tax imposed under Article 5C of Chapter 105 of the General Statutes.
(b)	(Effective June 30, 1997) The Solid Waste Management Trust Fund shall consist of the following:
(1)	Funds appropriated by the General Assembly.
(2)	Contributions and grants from public or private sources.
(3)	Ten percent (10%) of the proceeds of the scrap tire disposal tax imposed under Article 5B of Chapter 105 of the General Statutes.
(4)	(Repealed effective July 1, 1999) Eight percent (8%) of the proceeds of the white goods disposal tax imposed under Article 5C of Chapter 105 of the General Statutes.
(c)	The Department shall report annually on or before 1 September to the Environmental Review Commission as to the condition of the Solid Waste Management Trust Fund and as to the use of all funds allocated from the Solid Waste Management Trust Fund."
Sec. 6.  This act becomes effective July 1, 1996.