Sec. 12-692. Passenger motor vehicle rental surcharge. Imposition. Rate. Penalties. Appeals. (a) For purposes of this section: Secs. 12-693 to 12-699. Reserved for future use.
(1) "Passenger motor vehicle" means a passenger vehicle, which is rented without
a driver and which is part of a motor vehicle fleet of five or more passenger motor
vehicles that are used for rental purposes by a rental company.
(2) "Rental company" means any business entity that is engaged in the business of
renting passenger motor vehicles without a driver in this state to lessees and that uses
for rental purposes a motor vehicle fleet of five or more passenger motor vehicles in
this state, but does not mean any person, firm or corporation that is licensed, or required
to be licensed, pursuant to section 14-52, (A) as a new car dealer, repairer or limited
repairer or (B) as a used car dealer that is not primarily engaged in the business of renting
passenger motor vehicles without a driver in this state to lessees.
(3) "Lessee" means any person who leases a passenger motor vehicle from a rental
company for such person's own use and not for rental to others.
(b) There is hereby imposed a three per cent surcharge on each passenger motor
vehicle rented within the state by a rental company to a lessee for a period of less than
thirty-one days. The rental surcharge shall be imposed on the total amount the rental
company charges the lessee for the rental of a motor vehicle. Such surcharge shall be
in addition to any tax otherwise applicable to any such transaction and shall be includable
in the measure of the sales and use taxes imposed under chapter 219.
(c) Reimbursement for the surcharge imposed by subsection (b) of this section shall
be collected by the rental company from the lessee and such surcharge reimbursement,
termed "surcharge" in this subsection, shall be paid by the lessee to the rental company
and each rental company shall collect from the lessee the full amount of the surcharge
imposed by said subsection (b). Such surcharge shall be a debt from the lessee to the
rental company, when so added to the original lease or rental price, and shall be recoverable at law in the same manner as other debts. The rental contract shall separately indicate
the rental surcharge imposed on each passenger motor vehicle rental. The rental surcharge shall, subject to the provisions of subsection (d) of this section, be retained by
the rental company.
(d) (1) On or before February 15, 1997, and the fifteenth of February annually
thereafter, each rental company shall file a report with the Commissioner of Revenue
Services detailing the aggregate amount of personal property tax that is actually paid
by such company to a Connecticut municipality or municipalities during the preceding
calendar year on passenger motor vehicles that are used for rental purposes by such
company, the aggregate amount of registration and titling fees that are actually paid by
such company to the Department of Motor Vehicles of this state during the preceding
calendar year on passenger motor vehicles that are used for rental purposes by such
company and the aggregate amount of the rental surcharge that is actually received,
pursuant to this section, by such company during the preceding calendar year on passenger motor vehicles that are used for rental purposes by such company. The report shall
also show such other information as the commissioner deems necessary for the proper
administration of this section.
(2) On or before February 15, 1997, and the fifteenth of February annually thereafter, each rental company shall remit to the Commissioner of Revenue Services for deposit
in the General Fund, the amount by which the aggregate amount of the rental surcharge
actually received by such company on such vehicles during the preceding calendar
year exceeds the sum of the aggregate amount of property taxes actually paid by such
company on such vehicles to a Connecticut municipality or municipalities during the
preceding calendar year and the aggregate amount of registration and titling fees actually
paid by such company on such vehicles to the Department of Motor Vehicles of this
state during the preceding calendar year.
(3) For purposes of this subsection, in the case of any rental company that leases a
passenger motor vehicle from another person and that uses such vehicle for rental purposes and such lease requires such rental company to pay the registration and titling
fees and the property taxes to such other person, the rental company shall include (A)
in the aggregate amount of registration and titling fees actually paid by such rental
company to the Department of Motor Vehicles of this state, any such registration and
titling fees actually paid by such rental company to such other person on such passenger
motor vehicle, and (B) in the aggregate amount of property taxes actually paid by such
rental company to a Connecticut municipality or municipalities, any such property taxes
actually paid by such rental company to such other person on such passenger motor
vehicle or vehicles.
(e) Any person who fails to pay any amount required to be paid to the Commissioner
of Revenue Services under this section within the time required shall pay a penalty of
fifteen per cent of such amount or fifty dollars, whichever amount is greater, in addition
to such amount, plus interest at the rate of one per cent per month or fraction thereof
from the due date of such amount until the date of payment. Subject to the provisions
of section 12-3a, the commissioner may waive all or any part of the penalties provided
under this section when it is proven to the satisfaction of the commissioner that the
failure to pay any amount required to be paid to the commissioner was due to reasonable
cause and was not intentional or due to neglect.
(f) The Commissioner of Revenue Services for good cause may extend the time for
making any report and paying any amount required to be paid to the commissioner under
this section if a written request therefor is filed with the commissioner together with a
tentative report which shall be accompanied by a payment of any amount tentatively
believed to be due to the commissioner, on or before the last day for filing the report.
Any person to whom an extension is granted shall pay, in addition to the amount required
to be paid, interest at the rate of one per cent per month or fraction thereof from the date
on which such amount would have been due without the extension until the date of
payment.
(g) The provisions of sections 12-548 to 12-554, inclusive, and section 12-555a
shall apply to the provisions of this section in the same manner and with the same force
and effect as if the language of said sections 12-548 to 12-554, inclusive, and section
12-555a had been incorporated in full into this section, except to the extent that any
provision is inconsistent with a provision in this section, and except that the term "tax"
shall be read as "surcharge".
(P.A. 95-294, S. 1, 2; P.A. 96-129, S. 1, 2; June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-4, S. 6, 11; June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-11, S. 63,
65; P.A. 98-262, S. 9, 22.)
History: P.A. 95-294 effective January 1, 1996, and applicable to rentals made on or after said date; P.A. 96-129
amended Subsec. (a)(2) to exclude motor vehicle repair shop from the definition of rental company, effective July 1, 1996,
and applicable to rentals made on or after said date; June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-4 transferred filing requirements from the
Secretary of Policy and Management to the Commissioner of Revenue Services, added penalty for failure to file, authorized
the commissioner to extend the time for filing report, provided for the application of Secs. 12-548 to 12-554 and 12-555a
to this section, changed motor vehicle to passenger motor vehicle and made technical changes, effective June 30, 1997;
June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-11 changed effective date of June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-4 but without affecting this section; P.A.
98-262 amended Subsec. (a) to revise definition of "rental company" and add definition of "lessee" and added language
in Subsec. (d) to clarify provisions re rental companies that lease passenger vehicles and that are contractually obligated
to pay registration fees and property taxes, effective June 8, 1998, and applicable to calendar years commencing on or
after January 1, 1998.
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