This information is from 28th District State Sen. Joey Hensley, M.D., R-Hohenwald, who represents Giles and five other area counties.
I will go over laws passed this session over the next few weeks. Cutting taxes for farmers — The General Assembly approved legislation that provides tax relief to farmers.
It allows farmers to avoid paying sales tax on items and services used for agriculture production, including building materials, repair services, and labor, among other expenses. The $2.8 million tax reduction is meant to mirror tax reductions that manufacturers in Tennessee receive.
It does not apply to automobiles, household appliances, or fuel used in vehicles that travel on public highways in the state. It takes effect Jan. 1, 2023. Cutting taxes for broadband internet — To expand access to broadband internet, the General Assembly passed the Tennessee Broadband Investment Maximization Act, which establishes a temporary, three-year sales tax exemption for purchases of infrastructure used in providing broadband internet.
The sales tax exemption created by the bill does not apply to sales of personal consumer electronics. Eliminating taxes on gold — The General Assembly approved a measure to exempt certain sales of gold, silver, platinum and palladium coins and bullion from the sales and use tax. The tax reduction totals $360,000. Eliminating the professional privilege tax for physicians — After eliminating the professional privilege tax for various occupations in recent years, this year the General Assembly extended the tax exemption to physicians.
Attorneys, lobbyists, investment advisors and broker-dealers will continue to owe the $400 annual tax. The bill will apply to tax payments due June 1, 2023. Compensating vendors for sales tax collections — Vendors in Tennessee are the state’s chief tax collectors, hiring the personnel, investing in software and putting in the time to collect more than $11 billion every year for the state.
Until 2000, vendors were compensated for their trouble, but not since then due to financial challenges the state was experiencing.
A new measure restores compensation for vendors to collect tax to pre-2000 levels. Vendors receive 2% of the first $2,500 on each report, and $1.15% of amounts over $2,500 on each report. Repealing R&D amortization provision – To ensure businesses that spend money on research and development may deduct those expenses as they are incurred, a new law repeals the research and development amortization provision in the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
Since 1954, the revenue code has allowed businesses to deduct research and development expenses in the year in which they were incurred.
But that changed in January of 2022, when the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act took effect. That law requires companies to amortize research and development costs over five years instead of deducting them immediately each year. Businesses investing in research activities experience a higher liability in the short term, so the amortization provision in the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act will significantly impair private investment into research and development.
This new law will help ensure businesses and economies in the state that rely on R&D, will not be hampered by new federal regulations. Returning tax revenue to local governments (repeat from “Local Government”) – A new law could pave the way for more than $20 million in tax revenue returning to Tennessee counties. The state Department of Revenue has long charged a 1.125% fee to process local option sales tax. Lowering that fee to 0.5%, as has been proposed in the past, would free up an estimated $20.2 million each year that could be sent back to the counties. The new law does not propose a new fee, but would require the Department of Revenue to produce a report on the cost of processing sales tax revenue.
That report could be the basis for future conversations in the General Assembly about a potential fee change. Such a move would allow Davidson County to reclaim $5.3 million, Hamilton County to get back $2.07 million, Rutherford County to receive $2.1 million, and Maury County to recover $563,000 each year.
Hensley may be reached at 425 Rep. John Lewis Way N., Suite 742, Nashville TN, 37243, or call 615-741-3100, or call toll free at 1-800-449-8366, ext. 13100, or fax 615-253-0231.
His district address is 855 Summertown Highway, Hohenwald TN, 38462. His telephone number is 931-796-2018, his cell phone is 931-212-8823. His E-mail: sen.joey.hensley@capitol.tn.gov
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