SB 217--
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Session of 1997
SENATE BILL No. 217
By Committee on Elections and Local Government
2-5
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8 AN ACT concerning emergency telephone services; relating to the fi- 9 nancing thereof; amending K.S.A. 12-5303 and K.S.A. 1996 Supp. 12- 10 5302 and repealing the existing sections. 11 12 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas: 13 Section 1. K.S.A. 1996 Supp. 12-5302 is hereby amended to read as 14 follows: 12-5302. (a) In addition to other powers for the protection of the 15 public health and welfare, a governing body may provide for the operation 16 of an emergency telephone service and may pay for it by imposing an 17 emergency telephone tax for such service in those portions of the gov- 18 erning body's jurisdiction for which emergency telephone service has 19 been contracted. The governing body may do such other acts as are ex- 20 pedient for the protection and preservation of the public health and wel- 21 fare and are necessary for the operation of the emergency telephone 22 system. The governing body is hereby authorized by ordinance in the case 23 of cities and by resolution in the case of counties to impose such tax in 24 those portions of the governing body's jurisdiction for which emergency 25 telephone service has been contracted. The amount of such tax shall not 26 exceed $.75 per month per exchange access line or its equivalent. 27 (b) Within 60 days of the publication of a resolution by a county 28 adopted pursuant to subsection (a) there may be filed with the county 29 election officer of the county a petition signed by not less than 5% of the 30 registered voters of the county, and within 60 days of publication of an 31 ordinance adopted pursuant to subsection (a) there may be filed with the 32 county election officer of the county in which the city is located a petition 33 signed by not less than 5% of the registered voters of the city, in either 34 such case requesting that the question of the installation and operation 35 of emergency telephone service and imposition of tax therefor be sub- 36 mitted to the qualified voters of the county. Upon determination of the 37 sufficiency of such petition and certification thereof by the county elec- 38 tion officer, the proposition shall be submitted to the qualified voters of 39 the county or city as the case may be at the next primary or general 40 election of county officers following by not less than 60 days the certifi- 41 cation of such petition. If a majority of the votes cast at such election are 42 for the installation and operation of emergency telephone service and SB 217 2 1 2 -imposition of tax therefor, or if no protest petition is filed within the time 3 hereinbefore prescribed, the governing body may provide for the instal- 4 lation and operation of such service and impose such tax. If a tax is im- 5 posed on the effective date of this act or thereafter, any proposed increase 6 in the amount of the tax shall be subject to the protest petition provided 7 in this subsection. The proceeds of the tax shall be utilized to pay for the 8 operation of emergency telephone service as set forth in subsection (b) 9 of K.S.A. 12-5304, and amendments thereto, and may be imposed at any 10 time subsequent to execution of a contract with the provider of such 11 service at the discretion of the governing body. The collection of such tax 12 may begin at the time determined to be necessary to generate revenue 13 in an amount necessary to pay the nonrecurring expenses of establishing 14 the emergency telephone service. Any interest earned on revenue derived 15 from such tax shall be used to pay the expenses authorized by K.S.A. 12- 16 5304, and amendments thereto. Such tax shall not be imposed until after 17 the expiration of the protest period or until after approved at an election 18 if a sufficient protest petition is filed. 19 (c) As an alternative to the procedure provided in subsection (b), the 20 governing body may submit, on its own initiative, the proposal to establish 21 an emergency telephone service to the qualified voters of the city or 22 county for approval. Any such election shall be called and held in the 23 manner provided by the general bond law. 24 (d) Such tax shall be imposed only upon exchange access lines or their 25 equivalent. No such tax shall be imposed upon more than 100 exchange 26 access facilities or their equivalent per person per location. 27 (e) Every billed service user shall be liable for any tax imposed under 28 this act until it has been paid to the service supplier. Wireless service 29 users shall be exempt from the emergency telephone tax. 30 (f) The duty to collect any tax imposed under authority of this act 31 from a service user shall commence at such time as specified by the 32 governing body. Taxes imposed under authority of this act and required 33 by it to be collected by the service supplier shall be added to and may be 34 stated separately in the billings to the service user. 35 (g) The service supplier shall have no obligation to take any legal 36 action to enforce the collection of any tax imposed under authority of this 37 act. The service supplier shall provide annually the governing body with 38 a list of amounts uncollected along with the names and addresses of those 39 service users which carry a balance that can be determined by the service 40 supplier to be nonpayment of any tax imposed under authority of this act. 41 (h) Any tax imposed under authority of this act shall be collected 42 insofar as practicable at the same time as, and along with, the charges for 43 the tariff rate in accordance with the regular billing practice of the service 44 supplier. SB 217 3 1 2 -Sec. 2. K.S.A. 12-5303 is hereby amended to read as follows: 12- 3 5303. (a) Any tax imposed under authority of this act Except as provided 4 in subsection (b), any tax imposed pursuant to K.S.A. 12-5302, and 5 amendments thereto, and the amounts required to be collected are due 6 quarterly. The amount of tax collected in one calendar quarter by the 7 service supplier shall be remitted to the governing body no later than sixty 8 60 days after the close of a calendar quarter. On or before the sixtieth 9 60th day of each calendar quarter following, a return for the preceding 10 quarter shall be filed with the governing body in such form as the gov- 11 erning body and service supplier shall agree. The service supplier re- 12 quired to file the return shall deliver the return together with a remittance 13 of the amount of the tax payable to the office of the governing body. The 14 service supplier shall maintain records of the amount of any tax collected 15 pursuant to action in accord with this act. Such records shall be main- 16 tained for a period of one year from the time the tax is collected. 17 (b) From every remittance to the governing body made on or before 18 the date when the same becomes due, the service supplier required to 19 remit the same shall be entitled to deduct and retain, as an administrative 20 fee, an amount equal to two percent (2%) 2% thereof. 21 (b) Funds derived from the tax imposed pursuant to K.S.A. 12-5302, 22 and amendments thereto, on cellular, mobile or wireless telephones shall 23 be collected and remitted as follows: The service supplier of cellular, mo- 24 bile or wireless telephone systems shall separate such moneys by the zip 25 code of the wireless service user and remit those moneys, less the 2% 26 administrative fee, to the governing body of the city or county imposing 27 such tax to fund the PSAP which serves as the primary answering point 28 for such zip code. 29 Any and all funds collected from cellular, mobile or wireless telephone 30 systems shall not be subject to public disclosure or the amount of taxes 31 remitted by any service supplier. 32 Except as provided by this subsection, the service supplier shall remit 33 the amount of tax collected in the manner provided by subsection (a). 34 (c) At least once each calendar year, the governing body shall estab- 35 lish a tax rate, not to exceed the amount authorized, that together with 36 any surplus revenues carried forward will produce sufficient revenues to 37 fund the expenditures authorized by this act. Amounts collected in excess 38 of that necessary within a given year shall be carried forward to subse- 39 quent years. The governing body shall make its determination of such tax 40 rate each year no later than September 1 and shall fix the new rate to 41 take effect commencing with the first billing period of each customer on 42 or following the next January 1. Immediately upon making its determi- 43 nation and fixing the rate, the governing body shall publish in its minutes 44 the new rate, and it shall notify by registered mail every service supplier SB 217 4 1 2 -at least ninety (90) 90 days before such new rate will become effective. 3 The governing body may, at its own expense, may require an annual audit 4 of the service supplier's books and records concerning the collection and 5 remittance of the tax authorized by this act. 6 Sec. 3. K.S.A. 12-5303 and K.S.A. 1996 Supp. 12-5302 and 12-5301 7 are hereby repealed. 8 Sec. 4. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its 9 publication in the statute book.