EXTRACT OF THE KERALA FINANCE BILL, 2009
A
BILL
to give effect to certain financial proposals of the Government of Kerala for the Financial Year 2009-2010.
Preamble.-WHEREAS, it is expedient to give effect to certain financial proposals of the Government of Kerala for the Financial Year 2009-2010.
BE it enacted in the Sixtieth Year of the Republic of India as follows:
1. Short title and commencement.-
(1) This Act may be called the Kerala Finance Act, 2009.
(2) Sub-sections (1)(i), (2) and (5) to (9) of section 4, sub-sections (1), (2) and (5) to (7) of section 5, sub-sections (1) to (5) and (7) to (15) of section 6 and sub-sections (1), (2), (15) to (19) and (25)(iv) (b) of section 7 shall come into force on such date as the Government may, by notification in the Gazette, appoint and the remaining provisions shall come into force on the 1st day of April, 2009.
2. Amendment of Act 11 of 1957.-In the Kerala Surcharge on Taxes Act, 1957 (11 of 1957),
after section 3A, the following section shall be inserted, namely:
"3B. Reduction of arrears in case of public sector undertakings.-
(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, or in any judgment, decree or order of any court, tribunal or appellate authority, an assessee which is a public sector undertaking and which is in arrears of tax or any other amount due under this Act relating to the period ending on 31st March, 2005, may opt for settling the arrears by availing reduction at the following rates:
(a) a complete reduction of the interest on the tax amount and for the amount of penalty and interest thereon; and
(b) in the case of public sector undertakings which are running in profit, reduction in fifty percent of the principal amount; and
(c) in the case of public sector undertakings which are running at loss, a reduction in seventy-five percent of the principal amount:
Provided that public sector undertakings, the landed property of which are likely to be sold in execution of any judgment, decree or order of any court, tribunal or other authority shall not be eligible to opt under this scheme.
(2) A public sector undertaking which wishes to opt for payment of arrears under sub-section (1) shall make an application to the assessing authority in the prescribed form before 30th June, 2009, or on such date as may be notified by the Government.
(3) On receipt of an application under sub-section (2), the assessing authority shall verify the same and shall intimate the amount to the assessee, and thereupon they shall remit twenty five percent of the amount within 15 days of receipt of the intimation and the balance amount in three equal monthly instalments starting from the subsequent month.
(4) If the assessee commits any default in payment of the instalments, the reduction allowed under sub-section (1) is liable to be revoked.
(5) No action under sub-section (4) shall be taken without giving notice to the assessee.
(6) If the amount settled under this provision has been the subject matter of an appeal or revision, such appeal or revision may be continued and if the final orders of such appeal or revision results in the reduction of tax payable under this Act, the amount so reduced shall be refunded. But if, as the result of such appeal or revision, the tax payable under this Act is enhanced, the assessee shall pay such enhanced amount with interest thereon, in accordance with the provisions of this Act.".
4. Amendment of Act 15 of 1963. -In the Kerala General Sales Tax Act, 1963 (15 of
1963),
(1) in section 2,
(i) clause (i) shall be omitted;
(ii) in clause (xvii), the words "and includes ethanol blended petrol" shall be added at the end;
(2) in section 3,
(i) in sub-section (2), the words "Appellate Assistant Commissioners" shall be omitted;
(ii) the proviso to sub-section (3) shall be omitted;
(3) in section 17,
(i) for the fourth proviso to sub-section (6), the following proviso and Explanation shall be substituted, namely:
"Provided also that the assessment relating to the years up to and including the year 2004-05 pending as on 31st March, 2009 shall be completed on or before the 31st day of March, 2010.
Explanation:-For the purpose of the above proviso, it is clarified that the extension of time granted for completion of assessments is applicable in all cases where regular assessments have not been completed before the date fixed for completion of assessment in the respective years.";
(ii) in sub-section (8),
(a) for the first proviso, the following proviso shall be substituted, namely:
"Provided that all such assessments or re-assessments pending as on 31st March, 2009 shall be completed on or before 31st March, 2010.";
(b) for the third proviso, the following proviso shall be substituted, namely:
"Provided also that all such modified assessments or modified reassessments or remanded assessments pending as on 31st March, 2009 shall be completed on or before 31st March, 2010.";
(4) after section 23B, the following section shall be inserted, namely:
"23BA. Reduction of arrears in respect of public sector undertakings.-
(c) in the case of public sector undertakings which are running at loss, reduction in seventy-five percent of the principal amount:
Provided that public sector undertakings, the landed properties of which are likely to be sold in execution of any judgment, decree or order of any court, tribunal or other authority shall not be eligible to opt under this scheme.
(3) On receipt of an application under sub-section (2), the assessing authority shall verify the same and shall intimate the amount to the assessee, and thereupon they shall remit twenty five percent of the amount within 15 days of receipt of the intimation, and the balance amount in three equal monthly instalments starting from the subsequent month.
(6) If the amount settled under this provision has been the subject matter of an appeal or revision, such appeal or revision may be continued and if the final orders of such appeal or revision results in the reduction of tax payable under this Act, the amount so reduced shall be refunded. But if, as the result of such appeal or revision, the tax payable under this Act is enhanced, the assessee shall pay such enhanced amount with interest thereon, in accordance with the provisions of this Act.";
(5) section 34 shall be omitted;
(6) in section 36, in sub-section (1), the words and figures "section 34 or" shall be omitted;
(7) in section 37,
(i) in sub-section (1), the words "other than an Appellate Assistant Commissioner" shall be omitted;
(ii) in sub-section (2), the words "the Appellate Assistant Commissioner or" shall be omitted;
(8) in section 39,
(i) for sub-sections (1) and (2), the following sub-sections shall respectively be substituted, namely:
"(1) Any person objecting to an order affecting him passed by an appropriate authority under sub-section (6) or sub-section (7) of section 14, section 14A, sub-section (2) or subsection (3) or sub-section (4) or sub-section (4A) of section 17, sub-section (1) or subsection (2) of section 19, sections 19A, 19B, 19C, 26, 29, 29A, 30, 30A, or an order passed by a lower authority under section 43 and section 45A and any person objecting to an order passed by the Deputy Commissioner under sub-section (1) of section 35, may within a period of sixty days from the date on which the order was served on him in the manner prescribed, appeal against such order to the Appellate Tribunal:
Provided that the Appellate Tribunal may admit an appeal after the expiration of the said period if it is satisfied that the appellant had sufficient cause for not presenting the appeal within the said period.
(2) All appeals together with the interlocutory applications, if any, pending for disposal before any appellate authority under this Act as on the date of commencement of this provision shall stand transferred to the Appellate Tribunal and the Appellate Tribunal shall consider the same as if it is an appeal filed before it.";
(ii) after sub-section (2), the following sub-sections shall be inserted, namely:
"(2A) No appeal under this section shall be entertained unless at the time of presenting the appeal, the assessee has furnished satisfactory proof of payment of tax due on the turnover admitted by him.
(2B) The authority by whom the order appealed against had been passed or any officer empowered by the Government in this behalf, as the case may be, on receipt of notice that an appeal has been preferred under sub-section (1), may file within thirty days of receipt of the notice, a memorandum of cross objections, which shall be considered by the Appellate Tribunal while disposing of the appeal.";
(9) in section 45A, in sub-sections (1) and (3), the words "or the Appellate Assistant Commissioner" shall be omitted.
DECLARATION UNDER THE KERALA PROVISIONAL COLLECTION OF REVENUES ACT, 1985 (10 OF 1985)
It is hereby declared that it is expedient in the public interest that all the provisions of this Bill except sub-clauses (1)(i), (2) and (5) to (9) of clause 4, sub-clauses (1), (2) and (5) to (7) of clause 5, sub-clauses (1) to (5) and (7) to (15) of clause 6 and sub-clauses (1), (2), (15) to (19) and (25)(iv) (b) of clause 7 shall have effect from the 1st day of April, 2009 under the Kerala Provisional Collection of Revenues Act, 1985 (10 of 1985).
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS
The Bill seeks to amend the following enactments to give effect to the financial proposals of Government of Kerala for the financial year 2009-2010 as announced in paras 197, 198, 202 to 204, 206 to 212, 214, 216 to 229, 234 to 252 and 259 in the Budget Speech 2009 -2010, namely:
1. The Kerala Surcharge on Taxes Act, 1957 (11 of 1957)
2. The Kerala Stamp Act, 1959 (17 of 1959)
3. The Kerala General Sales Tax Act, 1963 (15 of 1963)
4. The Kerala Tax on Luxuries Act, 1976 (32 of 1976)
5. The Kerala Agricultural Income Tax Act, 1991 (15 of 1991)
6. The Kerala Value Added Tax Act, 2003 (30 of 2004)
FINANCIAL MEMORANDUM
Sub-clause (25) of clause 7 of the Bill proposes to amend section 94 of the Kerala Value Added Tax Act, 2003, to empower the Commissioner to constitute an authority consisting of three Deputy Commissioners nominated by him to decide disputes and to issue clarifications. The expenditure required for this purpose from the Consolidated Fund of the State cannot be estimated with any degree of accuracy at this stage.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING DELEGATED LEGISLATION
1. Clause 2 of the Bill proposes to insert a new section 3B to the Kerala Surcharge on Taxes Act, 1957, which seeks to empower the Government to prescribe the form for making an application to opt for settling the arrears by availing reductions in the case of public sector undertakings.
2. Sub -clause (3) of clause 4 of the Bill proposes to insert a new section 23BA to the Kerala General Sales Tax Act, 1963, which seeks to empower the Government to prescribe the form for making an application to opt for settling the arrears by availing reductions in the case of public sector undertakings.
3. Sub-clause (8) of clause 4 of the Bill proposes to amend section 39 of the Kerala General Sales Tax Act, 1963, which seeks to empower the Government to prescribe the manner in which the appeal against the order of the assessing authority has to be filed before the Appellate Tribunal.
4. Sub-clause (6) of clause 5 of the Bill proposes to amend section 7A of the Kerala Tax on Luxuries Act, 1976, which seeks to empower the Government to prescribe the manner in which the appeal against the order of assessment of the assessing authority has to be filed before the Appellate Tribunal.
5. Sub-clause (6) of clause 6 of the Bill proposes to insert a new section 37C to the Kerala Agricultural Income Tax Act, 1991, which seeks to empower the Government to prescribe the form for making an application to opt for settling the arrears by availing reductions.
6. Sub-clause (3) of clause 7 of the Bill proposes to amend section 6 of the Kerala Value Added Tax Act, 2003, which seeks to empower the Government to prescribe a statement to be filed along with the record of payment of quarterly tax and also to prescribe the details in the annual declaration which has to be filed before the authorities by the dealers.
7. Sub-clause (7) of clause 7 of the Bill proposes to amend section 20 of the Kerala Value Added Tax Act, 2003, which seeks to empower the Government to prescribe the manner for exemption of such class or classes of dealers or others from electronic filing of returns.
8. Sub-clause (10) of clause 7 of the Bill proposes to amend section 40 of the Kerala Value Added Tax Act, 2003, which seeks to empower the Government to prescribe the manner in which the details of goods received for auction, sold in auction and those goods returned to the owners without effecting auction.
9. Sub-clause (19) of clause 7 of the Bill proposes to amend section 60 of the Kerala Value Added Tax Act, 2003, which seeks to empower the Government to prescribe the manner in which the appeal against the order of the assessing authority has to be filed before the Appellate Tribunal.
The matters in respect of which rules are to be made are either administrative in nature or matters of detail. Further, the rules, after they are made, will be subject to thescrutiny of the Legislative Assembly. The delegation of legislative power is, thus, of a normal character.
Dr. T. M. THOMAS ISSAC.