HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

1049

THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2023

H.D. 2

STATE OF HAWAII

S.D. 2

 

 

 

 

 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

 

RELATING TO INCOME TAX.

 

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 


     SECTION 1.  Section 235-1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new definition to be appropriately inserted and to read as follows:

     ""Cost-of-living adjustment factor" means a factor calculated by adding 1.0 to the percentage change in the Urban Hawaii Consumer Price Index for all items, as published by the United States Department of Labor, from July of the preceding calendar year to July of the current calendar year; provided that, if the Urban Hawaii Consumer Price Index is discontinued, the Chained Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, as published by the United States Department of Labor, shall be used to calculate the cost-of-living adjustment factor."

     SECTION 2.  Section 235-55.6, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

     "§235-55.6  Expenses for household and dependent care services necessary for gainful employment.  (a)  Allowance of credit.

     (1)  In general.  For each resident taxpayer, who files an individual income tax return for a taxable year, and who is not claimed or is not otherwise eligible to be claimed as a dependent by another taxpayer for federal or Hawaii state individual income tax purposes, who maintains a household which includes as a member one or more qualifying individuals (as defined in subsection (b)(1)), there shall be allowed as a credit against the tax imposed by this chapter for the taxable year an amount equal to the applicable percentage of the employment-related expenses (as defined in subsection (b)(2)) paid by the individual during the taxable year.  If the tax credit claimed by a resident taxpayer exceeds the amount of income tax payment due from the resident taxpayer, the excess of the credit over payments due shall be refunded to the resident taxpayer; provided that tax credit properly claimed by a resident individual who has no income tax liability shall be paid to the resident individual; and provided further that no refunds or payment on account of the tax credit allowed by this section shall be made for amounts less than $1.

     (2)  Applicable percentage.  For purposes of paragraph (1), the taxpayer's applicable percentage shall be [determined as follows:

          Adjusted gross income         Applicable percentage

            Not over $25,000                   25%

            Over $25,000 but                   24%

              not over $30,000

            Over $30,000 but                   23%

              not over $35,000

            Over $35,000 but                   22%

              not over $40,000

            Over $40,000 but                   21%

              not over $45,000

            Over $45,000 but                   20%

              not over $50,000

            Over $50,000                       15%.]

          equal to fifty per cent reduced by one percentage point for each $3,000, or fraction thereof, by which the taxpayer's adjusted gross income exceeds the threshold amount; provided that the applicable percentage shall not be reduced below twenty-five per cent.

     (3)  Threshold amount.  For purposes of paragraph (2):

          (A)  For taxable years beginning after December 31, 2022, the threshold amount shall be $150,000; and

          (B)  For each taxable year beginning after December 31, 2023, the director, no later than December 15 of the preceding calendar year, shall recompute the threshold amount by multiplying the dollar amount for the preceding taxable year by the cost-of-living adjustment factor, if the cost‑of‑living adjustment factor is greater than zero, and rounding off the resulting product to the nearest $1.  If the cost-of-living adjustment factor is less than or equal to zero in a given year, then no adjustment will occur in the following year.

     (b)  Definitions of qualifying individual and employment‑related expenses.  For purposes of this section:

     (1)  Qualifying individual.  The term "qualifying individual" means:

          (A)  A dependent of the taxpayer who is under the age of thirteen and with respect to whom the taxpayer is entitled to a deduction under section 235‑54(a),

          (B)  A dependent of the taxpayer who is physically or mentally incapable of caring for oneself, or

          (C)  The spouse of the taxpayer, if the spouse is physically or mentally incapable of caring for oneself.

     (2)  Employment-related expenses.

          (A)  In general.  The term "employment-related expenses" means amounts paid for the following expenses, but only if such expenses are incurred to enable the taxpayer to be gainfully employed for any period for which there are one or more qualifying individuals with respect to the taxpayer:

              (i)  Expenses for household services, and

             (ii)  Expenses for the care of a qualifying individual.

              Such term shall not include any amount paid for services outside the taxpayer's household at a camp where the qualifying individual stays overnight.

          (B)  Exception.  Employment-related expenses described in subparagraph (A) which are incurred for services outside the taxpayer's household shall be taken into account only if incurred for the care of:

              (i)  A qualifying individual described in paragraph (1)(A), or

             (ii)  A qualifying individual (not described in paragraph (1)(A)) who regularly spends at least eight hours each day in the taxpayer's household.

          (C)  Dependent care centers.  Employment-related expenses described in subparagraph (A) which are incurred for services provided outside the taxpayer's household by a dependent care center (as defined in subparagraph (D)) shall be taken into account only if:

              (i)  Such center complies with all applicable laws, rules, and regulations of this State, if the center is located within the jurisdiction of this State; or

             (ii)  Such center complies with all applicable laws, rules, and regulations of the jurisdiction in which the center is located, if the center is located outside the State; and

            (iii)  The requirements of subparagraph (B) are met.

          (D)  Dependent care center defined.  For purposes of this paragraph, the term "dependent care center" means any facility which:

              (i)  Provides care for more than six individuals (other than individuals who reside at the facility), and

             (ii)  Receives a fee, payment, or grant for providing services for any of the individuals (regardless of whether such facility is operated for profit).

     (c)  Dollar limit on amount creditable.  The amount of the employment-related expenses incurred during any taxable year which may be taken into account under subsection (a) shall not exceed:

     (1)  [$2,400] $10,000 if there is one qualifying individual with respect to the taxpayer for such taxable year, or

     (2)  [$4,800] $20,000 if there are two or more qualifying individuals with respect to the taxpayer for such taxable year.

The amount determined under paragraph (1) or (2) (whichever is applicable) shall be reduced by the aggregate amount excludable from gross income under section 129 (with respect to dependent care assistance programs) of the Internal Revenue Code for the taxable year.

     (d)  Earned income limitation.

     (1)  In general.  Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, the amount of the employment-related expenses incurred during any taxable year which may be taken into account under subsection (a) shall not exceed:

          (A)  In the case of an individual who is not married at the close of such year, such individual's earned income for such year, or

          (B)  In the case of an individual who is married at the close of such year, the lesser of such individual's earned income or the earned income of the individual's spouse for such year.

     (2)  Special rule for spouse who is a student or incapable of caring for oneself.  In the case of a spouse who is a student or a qualified individual described in subsection (b)(1)(C), for purposes of paragraph (1), such spouse shall be deemed for each month during which such spouse is a full-time student at an educational institution, or is such a qualifying individual, to be gainfully employed and to have earned income of not less than:

          (A)  $200 if subsection (c)(1) applies for the taxable year, or

          (B)  $400 if subsection (c)(2) applies for the taxable year.

          In the case of any husband and wife, this paragraph shall apply with respect to only one spouse for any one month.

     (e)  Special rules.  For purposes of this section:

     (1)  Maintaining household.  An individual shall be treated as maintaining a household for any period only if over half the cost of maintaining the household for the period is furnished by the individual (or, if the individual is married during the period, is furnished by the individual and the individual's spouse).

     (2)  Married couples must file joint return.  If the taxpayer is married at the close of the taxable year, the credit shall be allowed under subsection (a) only if the taxpayer and the taxpayer's spouse file a joint return for the taxable year.

     (3)  Marital status.  An individual legally separated from the individual's spouse under a decree of divorce or of separate maintenance shall not be considered as married.

     (4)  Certain married individuals living apart.  If:

          (A)  An individual who is married and who files a separate return:

              (i)  Maintains as the individual's home a household that constitutes for more than one-half of the taxable year the principal place of abode of a qualifying individual, and

             (ii)  Furnishes over half of the cost of maintaining the household during the taxable year, and

          (B)  During the last six months of the taxable year the individual's spouse is not a member of the household,

          the individual shall not be considered as married.

     (5)  Special dependency test in case of divorced parents, etc.  If:

          (A)  Paragraph (2) or (4) of section 152(e) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, applies to any child with respect to any calendar year, and

          (B)  The child is under age thirteen or is physically or mentally incompetent of caring for the child's self,

          in the case of any taxable year beginning in the calendar year, the child shall be treated as a qualifying individual described in subsection (b)(1)(A) or (B) (whichever is appropriate) with respect to the custodial parent (within the meaning of section 152(e)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended), and shall not be treated as a qualifying individual with respect to the noncustodial parent.

     (6)  Payments to related individuals.  No credit shall be allowed under subsection (a) for any amount paid by the taxpayer to an individual:

          (A)  With respect to whom, for the taxable year, a deduction under section 151(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (relating to deduction for personal exemptions for dependents) is allowable either to the taxpayer or the taxpayer's spouse, or

          (B)  Who is a child of the taxpayer (within the meaning of section 151(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended) who has not attained the age of nineteen at the close of the taxable year.

          For purposes of this paragraph, the term "taxable year" means the taxable year of the taxpayer in which the service is performed.

     (7)  Student.  The term "student" means an individual who, during each of five calendar months during the taxable year, is a full-time student at an educational organization.

     (8)  Educational organization.  The term "educational organization" means a school operated by the department of education under chapter 302A, an educational organization described in section 170(b)(1)(A)(ii) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or a university, college, or community college.

     (9)  Identifying information required with respect to service provider.  No credit shall be allowed under subsection (a) for any amount paid to any person unless:

          (A)  The name, address, taxpayer identification number, and general excise tax license number of the person are included on the return claiming the credit,

          (B)  If the person is located outside the State, the name, address, and taxpayer identification number, if any, of the person and a statement indicating that the service provider is located outside the State and that the general excise tax license and, if applicable, the taxpayer identification numbers are not required, or

          (C)  If the person is an organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and exempt from tax under section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code, the name and address of the person are included on the return claiming the credit.

          In the case of a failure to provide the information required under the preceding sentence, the preceding sentence shall not apply if it is shown that the taxpayer exercised due diligence in attempting to provide the information so required.

     (f)  No credit shall be allowed under this section for any taxable year in the disallowance period. For purposes of this subsection, the disallowance period is:

     (1)  The period of ten taxable years after the most recent taxable year for which there was a final administrative or judicial decision that the taxpayer's claim for credit under this section was due to fraud; and

     (2)  The period of two taxable years after the most recent taxable year for which there was a final administrative or judicial decision disallowing the taxpayer's claim for credit.

     [(f)] (g)  Rules.  The director of taxation shall prescribe such rules under chapter 91 as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this section.

     (h)  This section shall not apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2028.

     (i)  As used in this section, "adjusted gross income" means adjusted gross income as defined by the Internal Revenue Code."

     SECTION 3.  Section 235-55.75, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended as follows:

     1.  By amending subsection (a) to read:

     "(a)  Each qualifying individual taxpayer may claim a refundable earned income tax credit.  The tax credit, for the appropriate taxable year, shall be [twenty] forty per cent of the federal earned income tax credit allowed and properly claimed under section 32 of the Internal Revenue Code and reported as such on the individual's federal income tax return."

     2.  By amending subsection (g) to read:

     "(g)  If nonrefundable credits claimed under this section for any of the four consecutive taxable years beginning after December 31, 2017, exceed the taxpayer's income tax liability for the original claim year, the excess of the tax credits over liability may be used as a credit against the taxpayer's net income tax liability in subsequent years until exhausted; provided that no credit carried forward under this subsection shall be used as a credit for a taxable year beginning after December 31, 2024.  This section shall not apply to taxable years after December 31, 2028."

     SECTION 4.  Section 235-55.85, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

     "§235-55.85  Refundable food/excise tax credit.  (a)  Each individual taxpayer, who files an individual income tax return for a taxable year, and who is not claimed or is not otherwise eligible to be claimed as a dependent by another taxpayer for federal or Hawaii state individual income tax purposes, may claim a refundable food/excise tax credit against the taxpayer's individual income tax liability for the taxable year for which the individual income tax return is being filed; provided that an individual who has no income or no income taxable under this chapter and who is not claimed or is not otherwise eligible to be claimed as a dependent by a taxpayer for federal or Hawaii state individual income tax purposes may claim this credit.

     (b)  Each individual taxpayer may claim a refundable food/excise tax credit multiplied by the number of qualified exemptions to which the taxpayer is entitled in accordance with the table below; provided that [a husband and wife] spouses filing separate tax returns for a taxable year for which a joint return could have been filed by them shall claim only the tax credit to which they would have been entitled had a joint return been filed.

 

     [Adjusted gross income        Credit per exemption

     for taxpayers filing

     a single return

     Under $5,000                         $110

     $5,000 under $10,000                 $100

     $10,000 under $15,000                 $ 85

     $15,000 under $20,000                 $ 70

     $20,000 under $30,000                 $ 55

     $30,000 and over                      $  0.

 

     Adjusted gross income         Credit per exemption

     for heads of household,

     married individuals filing

     separate returns, and

     married couples filing

     joint returns

     Under $5,000                         $110

     $5,000 under $10,000                  $100

     $10,000 under $15,000                 $ 85

     $15,000 under $20,000                 $ 70

     $20,000 under $30,000                 $ 55

     $30,000 under $40,000                 $ 45

     $40,000 under $50,000                 $ 35

     $50,000 and over                    $  0.]

     Adjusted gross income         Credit per exemption

     for taxpayers filing

     a single return

     Under $15,000                        $220

     $15,000 under $20,000                $200

     $20,000 under $25,000                 $170

     $25,000 under $30,000                 $140

     $30,000 under $40,000                 $110

     $40,000 and over                      $  0.

 

     Adjusted gross income         Credit per exemption

     for heads of household,

     surviving spouses,

     spouses filing

     separate returns, and

     married couples filing

     joint returns

     Under $15,000                        $220

     $15,000 under $20,000                 $200

     $20,000 under $25,000                 $170

     $25,000 under $30,000                 $140

     $30,000 under $40,000                 $110

     $40,000 under $50,000                 $ 90

     $50,000 under $60,000                 $ 70

     $60,000 and over                     $  0.

 

     (c)  For the purposes of this section, a qualified exemption is defined to include those exemptions permitted under this chapter; provided that no additional exemption may be claimed by a taxpayer who is sixty-five years of age or older; provided that a person for whom exemption is claimed has been physically present in the State for more than nine months during the taxable year; and provided further that multiple exemptions shall not be granted because of deficiencies in vision or hearing, or other disability.  For purposes of claiming this credit only, a minor child receiving support from the department of human services of the State, social security survivor's benefits, and the like, may be considered a dependent and a qualified exemption of the parent or guardian.

     (d)  The tax credit under this section shall not be available to:

     (1)  Any person who has been convicted of a felony and who has been committed to prison and has been physically confined for the full taxable year;

     (2)  Any person who would otherwise be eligible to be claimed as a dependent but who has been committed to a youth correctional facility and has resided at the facility for the full taxable year; or

     (3)  Any misdemeanant who has been committed to jail and has been physically confined for the full taxable year.

     (e)  The tax credits claimed by a taxpayer pursuant to this section shall be deductible from the taxpayer's individual income tax liability, if any, for the tax year in which they are properly claimed.  If the tax credits claimed by a taxpayer exceed the amount of income tax payment due from the taxpayer, the excess of credits over payments due shall be refunded to the taxpayer; provided that tax credits properly claimed by [an] individual who has no income tax liability shall be paid to the individual; and provided further that no refunds or payment on account of the tax credits allowed by this section shall be made for amounts less than $1.

     (f)  All claims for tax credits under this section, including any amended claims, shall be filed on or before the end of the twelfth month following the close of the taxable year for which the credits may be claimed.  Failure to comply with the foregoing provision shall constitute a waiver of the right to claim the credit.

     (g)  This section shall not apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2028.

     [(g)] (h)  For the purposes of this section, "adjusted gross income" means adjusted gross income as defined by the Internal Revenue Code."

     SECTION 5.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken.  New statutory material is underscored.

     SECTION 6.  This Act, upon its approval, shall apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2022.


 


 

Report Title:

Income Tax; Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit; Refundable Earned Income Tax Credit; Refundable Food/Excise Tax Credit

 

Description:

Increases the applicable percentage of employment-related expenses that is used to calculate the amount of the child and dependent care tax credit.  Increases the cap amount on employment-related expenses that may be used to claim the child and dependent care tax credit.  Annually adjusts the threshold amount of the child and dependent care tax credit by a cost‑of‑living adjustment factor.  Increases the amount of the refundable earned income tax credit.  Increases the income thresholds and credit amounts of the refundable food/excise tax credit.  Sunsets these tax credits on December 31, 2028.  (SD2)

 

 

 

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.