Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Delaware in General Assembly met:
Section 1. That Section 64 of Chapter 6 of the Revised Code of Delaware, 1935, as amended by Chapters 5 and 6 of Volume 41, Laws of Delaware, be and the same is hereby amended by striking out the last paragraph in said Section 64 and inserting in lieu thereof the following new paragraph:
Provided, however, that all corporations as herein defined which are regulated investment companies as defined by Section 170 of the Act of Congress commonly called "The Revenue Act of 1942" as now existing or as hereafter amended, shall pay to the State Tax Department as an annual franchise tax, a tax computed either under paragraph (1) hereof, or a tax computed under paragraph (2) hereof, or a tax at the rate of One Hundred Fifty Dollars per annum for each One Million Dollars, or fraction thereof in excess of One Million Dollars, of the average gross assets thereof during the taxable year, whichever be the least. Said average assets for the purposes of this section shall be taken to be the mean of the gross assets on January 1 and December 31 of the taxable year. Any corporation electing to pay a tax under this proviso shall submit to the Secretary of State at the time of filing its annual report as required by the next preceding section of this Chapter, a statement under oath made by its President, a Vice-President, its Treasurer or Secretary, certifying that such corporation is a regulated investment company as above defined, and stating the amount of its assets on January 1 and December 31 .of the taxable year, and the mean thereof. The Secretary of State may investigate the facts set forth in said statement under oath and if it should be found that said corporation so electing to pay under said proviso shall not be a regulated investment company, as above defined, shall assess upon such corporation a tax under paragraphs (1) or (2) hereof, whichever be the lesser.
Section 2. That Section 71 of Chapter 6 of the Revised Code of Delaware, 1935, as amended, be and the same is hereby amended by adding a new paragraph at the end of said Section 71 as follows:
That all corporations incorporated and existing under the laws of the State of Delaware, whose assets are located in any enemy occupied country or are located at any place where it is made unlawful by any law of the United States of America now or hereafter enacted or by any rule, regulation or proclamation or executive order issued under any such law to send any communications, are relieved and freed from any and all assessment of franchise taxes provided for by the Franchise Tax Law of the State of Delaware which were assessed and unpaid or may have been assessable and payable for any period subsequent to December 7, 1941, and that such corporations are further relieved of the necessity of filing any State reports due or required on or after December 7, 1941.
The provisions of this Section shall be effective until six months after communication with corporations or their officers and agents located in enemy-occupied countries may be lawfully reestablished or until the provisions are repealed by legislative action,
The State Tax Board shall administer the provisions of this Section and may require such evidence, submitted by any officer or agent, as in its judgment may be necessary or desirable to determine whether or not a corporation is entitled to relief from taxes and the filing of reports during the aforesaid period,
may make such regulations in relation thereto as it may deem desirable or necessary and shall certify to the Tax Department and the Secretary of State the names of all corporations which the said Board has classified as being entitled to relief hereunder.
Section 3. If this Act or any part thereof should be held unconstitutional such holding shall not affect the provisions of said Section 64, as amended by the said Act approved April 9, 1937.