Montana taxpayers digest, 1996

44 Pages·1996·1.3 MB·English

by  Montana. Dept. of Revenue

3
352.13
E4M
L996
tana
Taxpayers Digest
1996
STSTC DOCUMENTS COLLECTI
APR 2 ' 2004
MONTANA STATE LIBRARY
1515 E. 6th AVE.
HELENA. MONTANA 5962C
MONTANASTATELIBRARY
3 0864 1002 2433 9
FOREWORD
Purpose
The Montana Taxpayers Digest is designed to provide citizens with a brief
summary ofstate and local taxes and fees administered by the Department
of Revenue. A few of the more common taxes, fees and licenses
administered by other agencies have also been included. It is not intended
to be anoverview ofall fees, taxes, and licenses collected or required by the
State ofMontana. Taxpayers should use this as a reference guide only and
refer to contact addresses and phone numbers for more detailed and specific
information. This booklet incorporates changes resulting from the 1995
Montana Legislamre.
How to Use This Booklet
The Taxpayers Digest is divided into 7 sections. The first four relate to
taxes, licenses, fees and incentives. The last three provide source
A
information for specific purposes. table ofcontents follows this page and
canbe used as a quick sunmiary ofthe taxes, licenses, fees and incentives
included in the booklet. Each page of the booklet has a page number and a
key phrase at the bottom of the page that indicates which section of the
booklet one is in. (i.e. page 1-3 with key phrase "Individuals" refers to the
tliird page ofsection 1 wliich is Taxes and Fees Collected From Individuals.)
Section 1. Taxes andFees Collected From Individuals
Includes those taxes and fees collected from individuals. Key phrase =
Individuals.
Section 2. Taxes Paid by Businesses
Includes tiiose taxes and fees paidby businesses. Key phrase = Businesses.
Section 3. Business Tax Incentives
Includes a variety of business tax incentives ordered first by type of tax
(property, corporation, natural resource, etc.) and then alphabetically within
the type. Key phrase = Incentives.
Section 4. Licenses and Fees
Includes licenses and fees administered by the Department of Revenue.
Does not include professional licensing. Key phrase == Licenses.
Section 5. Registering a Business
Includes contact addresses and information on registering a business. Key
phrase = Registration.
«.sl
Section 6. Other Information Sources
Source informationconcerning Starting a Business, ProfessionalLicensing,
Employment andWage Laws, and some taxes, licenses and fees collected by
other agencies. Key phrase — Sources.
Section 7. Directory and Quick Directory
Lists state agency addresses and phone numbers. Key phrase = Directory.
The last page is a quickreference ofDepartment ofRevenue phone numbers
as well as a few general information numbers. Key phrase = Quick.
Additional Copies
Additional copies of the Montana Taxpayers Digest may be obtained by
writing to the:
MontanaDepartment ofRevenue
Office ofResearch and Information
Mitchell Building
Helena, Montana 59620
Phone [phone]
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TAXES AND FEES COLLECTED FROM INDIVIDUALS 1-1
Accommodations Tax 1-1
Driver's License 1-1
Income Tax 1-1
Income Tax Withholding 1-2
Inheritance/Estate Tax 1-2
Motor Vehicle Licenses and Registration 1-3
Old Fund Liability Tax 1-3
Property Tax 1-4
Resort Tax 1-4
Sales Tax 1-4
Statewide Emergency Telephone System (911) and TDD
Fees 1-4
Other Taxes 1-5
TAXES PAID BY BUSINESSES 2-1
Accommodations Tax 2-1
Beer Tax 2-1
Cement and Gypsum Producers License Tax 2-1
Cigarette Tax 2-1
Cigarette Wholesaler And Retailer Licenses 2-2
Coal Gross Proceeds Tax 2-2
Coal Severance Tax 2-2
Consumer Counsel Tax 2-3
Contractor's Gross Receipts Tax 2-3
Corporation License Tax 2-3
Electrical Energy Producer's Tax 2-4
Income Tax Withholding 2-4
Liquor Excise Tax 2-4
Liquor License Tax 2-5
Metal Mines Gross Proceeds Tax 2-5
Metal Mines License Tax 2-5
Micaceous Mineral Mines License Tax 2-5
Miscellaneous Mines Net Proceeds Tax 2-6
Motor Fuel Taxes 2-6
Nursing Facilities Bed Tax 2-7
Oil and Namral Gas Production Tax 2-7
Old Fund Liability Tax 2-7
Property Tax 2-8
Public Service Commission Tax 2-8
Resource Indemnity and Groundwater Assessment Tax .... 2-8
Rural Electric and Telephone Co-op Tax 2-9
Statewide Emergency Telephone System and TDD Fees 2-9
. . .
Telephone License Tax 2-9
Tobacco Products Tax 2-9
Wine Tax 2-10
BUSINESS TAX INCENTIVES 3-1
Individual Income and Corporation License Tax Incentives
Land Sale to Beginning Farmers Deduction 3-1
Montana Capital Company Credit 3-1
New or Expanding Industry Wage Credit 3-1
Net Operating Loss Carry Back and Carry Forward
Provisions 3-2
Organic Fertilizer Tax Deduction 3-2
Recycling Tax Credit and Deduction 3-2
Research and Development Firms Exemption 3-3
Rural Physician Tax Credit 3-3
Small Business Investment Company Tax Exemption 3-3
Water's Edge Unitary Combination Option 3-4
Wind Farms Tax Credit 3-4
Property Tax Incentives
Business Incubators Exemption 3-5
Canola Seed Oil Processing Machinery and Equipment
Reduced Rate 3-5
Expanding "Value-added" Machinery and Equipment
Abatements (Local Option) 3-5
Freeport Merchandise and Business Inventories Exemption 3-5
.
Industrial Parks Owned and Operated by a Local Economic
Development Organization or Port Authority
Exemptions 3-6
"New Industry" Reduced Rate 3-6
New or Expanding Industries Abatements (Local Option) 3-6
. .
Reduced Assessments for Non-Producing Agricultural
and Timber Processing Plants (Local Option) .... 3-6
Personal Property Exemptions 3-7
Remodeling/Reconstruction Abatements (Local Option) ... 3-7
Research and Development Firms, Pollution Control
Equipment, Gasohol Producing Property, and
Electrolytic Reduction Equipment Reduced Rate 3-7
. .
Natural Resource Tax Incentives
Coal Production Incentives 3-8
Oil and Gas Production Incentives 3-8
LICENSES AND FEES 4-1
Alcoholic Beverages
Beer License - Retail 4-1
Beer License - Wholesale 4-1
Liquor License Fees 4-1
Special Beer/Wine Permits 4-1
Veterans or Fraternal Special Permits 4-2
Wine Distributor's License 4-2
Wine Licenses - Retail 4-2
Other Licenses
Cigarette Dealers 4-3
Tobacco Products Retail Sale License 4-3
BUSINESS REGISTRATION PROCEDURES 5-1
Accommodation Tax 5-1
Corporation License Tax 5-1
Employer Taxes 5-2
OTHER INFORMATION SOURCES 6-1
DIRECTORY
7-1

TAXES AND FEES COLLECTED FROM
INDIVIDUALS
Accommodations Tax - Users ofhotel, motel, or campground facilities are
taxed at a rate equal to 4% of die charge for staying at the facility.
Collected by: The owner or operator ofthefacility and remitted to:
Department ofRevenue, Income and Miscellaneous Tax Division
Business Tax Bureau
P.O. Box 5835
Helena, Mt 59604
Driver's License - Driver's license fee - $4 per year or fraction ofa year.
Commercial vehicle operator endorsement (paid in addition to driver's
license fee): interstate - $5 per year or fraction ofa year, intrastate - $3.50
per year or fractionofa year. Motorcycle endorsement (paid in addition to
A
driver's license fee) - $0.50 per year or fraction ofa year. license expires
on the licensee's birthday 8 years or less after the date of issue with two
exceptions. A license expires on the licensee's 21st birthday. A license
expires on a licensee's 75th birthday. A license issued to a person who is
75 years or older expires on the licensee's birthday 4 years or less after date
ofissue. All license fees described above are collected at the time oflicense
issue and are paid in advance for the entire term of the license, (i.e. an
eight-year driver's license costs $32; a four-year costs $16.) Examinations
are required. Duplicate license - $5.
Applications obtainedfrom andfees paid to:
Local county treasurer or driver examiner
Income Tax - Individuals are liable for income tax on Montana-generated
income. Taxable income is derived from gross income by making certain
adjustments and taking a variety ofallowable deductions and exemptions.
This tax generally applies to the net income of Montana residents and
non-residents. The tax due is then calculated by using the following rate
schedule:
Taxable Income TaxLiability
S
TaxableIncome TaxLiability
$ 18,400 25.800 8% minus $572
25,800 36,900 9% minus $830
36,900 64.600 10% minus $1,199
over 64,600 11% minus $1,845
Taxpayers, spouses, and each dependent are allowed a $1,480 exemption.
Each year the personal exemption, standard deduction, and rate schedule are
indexed for inflation. (Rate schedule andexemption, above, arefor tax year
1995.) A minimum standard deduction will be effective beginning in tax
year 1996.
Electronic filing ofthe Montana remm along with the federal return will be
available for tax year 1995 and subsequent years. Telefile and direct deposit
ofrefunds will be implemented soon.
Non-residents are taxed just as residents with a final proration of their
calculated tax liability. The proration compares Montana source income to
total with the resulting percentage multipUed times the computed tax liability.
Taxes collected by and more information availablefrom:
Department ofRevenue, Income and Miscellaneous TaxDivision
P.O. Box 5805
MT
Helena, 59604
[phone]
Income TaxWithholding - With certain statutory exceptions, every resident
and non-resident employer doing business inthis state is required to withhold
Montana income tax from wages paid to an employee for services rendered
within this state and services rendered outside this state by Montana
residents.
Withheld by employer and remitted to:
Department ofRevenue, Income and Miscellaneous Tax Division
P.O. Box 5805
MT
Helena, 59604
Inheritance/Estate Tax - Paid by the recipient (individual or corporation)
ofany decedent's property or interest within this state. This tax also applies
to non-residents provided the transferred property is in Montana. Primary
rates of taxation ofinheritances range from 2% to 8% ofthe clear market
value ofsuch inheritance under $25,000 depending on the relationship of the
beneficiary to the decedent. Certain exemptions, depending on the
Individuals 1-2