CHAPTER 160
FORMERLY
HOUSE SUBSTITUTE NO. 1
TO
HOUSE BILL NO. 32
AN ACT ENTITLED THE TRAVELINK TRAFFIC MITIGATION ACT" AMENDING CHAPTER 25 OF TITLE 18, CHAPTER 23 OF TITLE 19, AND CHAPTERS 11AND 20 OF TITLE 30 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO TAX CREDITS FOR MITIGATION OF COMMUTER TRAFFIC.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:
Section 1. Amend Chapter 20, Title 30 of the Delaware Code by creating a new Subchapter IV., to read as follows:
"Subchapter IV. Tax Credit and License Fee Reduction for Mitigation of Commuter Traffic During Peak Travel Periods.
§2030. Short Title.
This subchapter shall be known and may be cited as "The Travelink Traffic Mitigation
Act."
§2031. Declaration of Purpose.
The purpose of this Act shall be to mitigate traffic congestion associated with commuting to and from the work place during peak travel periods and to accomplish traffic mitigation through the provision of a tax incentive to employers.
§2032. Definitions.
(1) The Department' shall mean the Department of Transportation and its several divisions, agencies, authorities, and administrations as appropriate.
(2) 'Department-Certified Travelink Program' shall mean an employer's program, approved by the Department, to reduce traffic congestion during peak travel periods through consolidation of employee commuting from their homes or within the proximity of their homes to their places of employment.
(3) 'Direct Costs' shall mean those unreimbursed costs incurred by employers associated with a Department-Certified Travelink Program, limited to the following:
(a) any employer-provided vehicle, acquired or leased, and used as part of a Travelink Program;
(b) maintenance of an employer-provided vehicle used in the Program;
(c) subsidization of employee commuting costs in the form of direct payments to third party providers of transportation, including public transit; and
(d) payments to third parties, excluding the Department, for general administration of the Travelink Program.
(4) 'Employee' shall mean an individual employed by an employer, and also shall mean an individual participating in programs relating to the Job Training Partnership Act, Pub. L. 97-300, Oct. 13, 1982, 96 Stat. 1322, as amended.
(5) 'Employer-provided vehicles' shall mean any automobile, van, or bus, either owned or subsidized by an employer, used in a ride-sharing arrangement during peak travel periods, provided, however, that a minimum of three employees must commute in the vehicle during said periods so as to make such vehicles eligible for the benefits provided in this Act.
(6) 'Employer' shall mean any person, partnership, association, bank, trust company, national bank, corporation, company, mutual company, joint-stock company, society, trust, trust company, unincorporated organization, trustee, trustee in bankruptcy, receiver, or other natural or artificial legal entity authorized to do business in this State, or any group, cooperative or association thereof, employing a minimum of one hundred fifty full-time employees or their equivalent.
(7) 'Peak travel periods' shall mean between the hours of 6:30 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. and between the hours of 3:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.
(8) 'Ride-Sharing Arrangement' shall mean any voluntary association of employees who, with the assistance, contribution, or promotion of their employers, participate in a Department-Certified Travelink Program.
(9) The Secretary' shall mean the Secretary of the Department of Transportation or his delegate.
§2033. Reduction in business taxes and/or license fees for mitigation of commuter traffic.
(a) Employers who participate in a Department-Certified Travelink Program shall be eligible for a credit against the taxes and/or fees imposed by the following statutory provisions and such credit shall be taken annually at the conclusion of the tax year, subject to such return requirements as may be imposed by the State Bank Commissioner, Insurance Commissioner, Secretary of Labor or Secretary of Finance.
(1) Chapter 11 of Title 5;
(2) §§702 and 703 of Title 18;
(3) Chapter 19 of this Title;
(4) §2702(b) of this Title;
(5) Chapter 33 of this Title;
(6) §2301(d) of this Title;
(7) §2902(c) of this Title;
(8) §2903(c) of this Title;
(9) §2904(c) of this Title;
(10) §2905(b)(1) of this Title;
(11) §2906(c) of this Title; or
(12) §2907(c) of this Title.
The amount of the credit shall be determined under subsection (b) of this Section. Credits under this Section shall be taken by the employer against taxes in the order specified in this Subsection.
(b) Subject to the limitations contained In subsections (c) and (d) of this section, the credit granted under subsection (a) of this section shall be the product of either equation described herein, whichever is less:
(1) TC (CRT/CTG) x DC; or
(2) TC = CTR x $250.
As used in this subsection, TC is the amount of the tax credit; CTG is the number of commuter trips generated, defined herein as the annualized number of employees reporting and departing from the place of employment during the peak travel periods; CTR is the number of commuter trip reductions, defined herein as the number of employees participating in a Department-certified Travelink Program for at least 130 days of the applicable taxable year; and DC is the employer's allowable direct costs.
(c) The amount of the credit allowable under this section for any taxable year shall not exceed 100 percent of the amount of taxes and/or fees imposed upon the employer by the statutes referred to in subsection (a) of this section, for such taxable year (computed without regard to this section).
(d) The amount of the credit determined under subsection (b) of this section for any taxable year that is not allowable for such taxable year solely as a result of the limitation contained in subsection (c) of this section shall be a credit carryover for up to 3 subsequent taxable years. In applying the limitation contained in subsection (c) of this section to any taxable year to which a credit may be carried under this subsection, any credit carryovers to such taxable year shall be considered to be applied in reduction of the taxes and/or fees imposed upon employers referred to in subsection (a) of this section for such taxable year in the order of the taxable years from which such taxable years are carried over, beginning with the credit carryover from the earliest taxable year, and only after all such credit carryovers to such taxable year have been allowed in full shall any credit that would be allowable in such taxable year without regard to this subsection be allowed.
§2034. Rules and Regulations.
The Secretary shall prescribe such rules and regulations as he may deem necessary to carry out the purposes of this subchapter, including but not limited to the following:
(a) Procedures for certification of Travelink Programs, including
(1) a provision giving certification priority to those employers whose place of employment is adjacent to, or for which the predominant commuting routes to the place of employment are, those roads and highways that are at Level of Service 0, as defined by the Department, or at lower Levels of Service, during the peak travel periods;
(2) a provision giving certification priority to those employers who develop a mitigation plan which delineates goals and congestion relief techniques extending beyond any plans or programs of the employer existing prior to the effective date of this Act;
(3) a provision giving certification priority to those employers who develop an ongoing marketing program directed towards and capable of increasing and sustaining employee participation over time;
(4) development of a Department-administered monitoring plan; and
(b) Coordination of the provisions of this subchapter with the Division of Revenue, the State Bank Commissioner, the Insurance Commissioner, or other state agencies, divisions, or departments affected by this subchapter.
§2035. Confidentiality.
Written or recorded information, provided by employers as part of their application for or participation in a Department-Certified Travelink Program, shall be treated as confidential, and to the extent used for that purpose shall not be considered as a public record under the provisions of Chapter 100 of Title 29.
Section 2. Amend §1106(b), Chapter 11, Title 30 of the Delaware Code by inserting at the end thereof a new paragraph (6) to read as follows:
"(6) Benefits received by a resident individual through participation in a Travelink Program certified by the Delaware Department of Transportation to the extent such benefits are included in the federal adjusted gross income of the taxpayer."
Section 3. Amend §2503, Chapter 25, Title 18 of the Delaware Code by striking the phrase "subdivision (2)" appearing in subsection (c) and inserting in lieu thereof the phrase "subdivisions (2) and (7)".
Section 4. Amend Section 2503(c), Chapter 25, Title 18, Delaware Code by creating a new subsection to read as follows:
"(7) Rate filings concerning automobile collision insurance shall provide for a credit of 5 percent of annual premiums for such coverage for any individually owned vehicle classified.as a private passenger vehicle owned by employees participating in an approved Travelink Traffic Mitigation Act program created pursuant to Subchapter IV. of Chapter 20 of Title 30."
Section 5. Amend §2301(15)(a), Chapter 23, Title 19 of the Delaware Code by inserting the following phrase after the words "at the time of the injury" and before the semicolon at the end of subsection (a):
", provided, however, that participation in an approved Travelink Traffic Mitigation Act program, created pursuant to Subchapter IV of Chapter 20 of Title 30, shall not be construed as meeting either exception contained in this subsection."
Section 6. If any provision of this Act or the application thereof to any person or circumstances is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of the Act which shall be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to that end the provisions of this Act are declared to be severable.
Section 7. This Act shall become effective for taxable years beginning after December 31, 1989.
Section 8. Unless continued, reestablished, or extended by further act of the General Assembly, the provisions of this Act shall not be effective for taxable years beginning after December 31, 1995.
Approved February 6, 1990.