Authorizes a tax credit for certain volunteer drivers

SECOND REGULAR SESSION
HOUSE BILL NO. 2039
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBL Y
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENT A TIVE TERR Y .
4090H.02I JOSEPH ENGLER, Chief Clerk
AN ACT
T o amend chapter 135, RSMo, by adding thereto one new section relating to a tax credit for
certain volunteer drivers.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Chapter 135, RSMo, is amended by adding thereto one new section, to be
2 known as section 135.2555, to read as follows:
135.2555. 1. For the purposes of this section, the following terms shall mean:
2 (1) "CPI", the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, as defined and
3 officially r ecorded by the United States Department of Labor or its successor;
4 (2) "Department", the Missouri department of r evenue;
5 (3) "Motor vehicle", any self-prope lled vehicle not operated exclusively upon
6 tracks, except farm tractors, motorized bicycles, and electric bicycles;
7 (4) "Qualified amount", for a taxpayer qualifying under this section in a given
8 tax year , the total amount of unr eimbursed costs that the volunteer driver has incurr ed
9 for gasoline, diesel fuel, or electric charging station use and the total unr eimbursed
10 mileage in an amount equal to the standard business mileage rate published by the
11 Internal Revenue Service for the tax year in which the cr edit is claimed;
12 (5) "Qualified organization", an organization that is exempt fr om taxation
13 under 26 U.S.C. Section 501(c)(3), as amended;
14 (6) "Qualified transportation", the transportation of any person or pr operty
15 with the knowledge of and for the benefit or support of a qualified organization;
16 (7) "T ax cre dit", a cr edit against the tax otherwise due under chapter 143,
17 excluding withholding tax imposed under sections 143.191 to 143.265;
EXPLANA TION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is
intended to be omitted from the law . Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language.
18 (8) "T axpayer", an individual subject to the state income tax imposed by chapter
19 143, excluding withholding tax imposed by sections 143.191 to 143.265;
20 (9) "V olunteer driver", a licensed driver operating a motor vehicle for the
21 benefit and support of a qualified organization without expectation of a salary , fee, or
22 pr ofit. Reimbursement of expenses or de minimis, unsolicited gifts of appr eciation shall
23 not constitute an expectation of a salary , fee, or pro fit.
24 2. (1) For all tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2027, a taxpayer who is
25 a volunteer driver operating a motor vehicle for the purpose of qualified transportation
26 shall be authorized to claim a tax credi t in an amount equal to the taxpayer's qualified
27 amount, not to exceed a maximum of thr ee thousand dollars per tax year .
28 (2) The maximum qualified amount that may be claimed by a taxpayer under
29 this subsection may be incre ased annually per calendar year for inflation by an amount
30 equal to the per centage change in the annual average of the CPI, or zero, whichever is
31 gr eater . The department shall calculate and publish this amount not later than January
32 first each year .
33 3. (1) T ax cr edits authorized by this section shall not be refu ndable and shall not
34 be transferre d, sold, or assigned, but may be carried forward for the thr ee subsequent
35 tax years or until the cr edit is fully claimed, whichever occurs first.
36 (2) A taxpayer shall not claim a tax cr edit under this section for any miles driven
37 or associated costs to the extent the taxpayer has claimed a deduction or any other tax
38 benefit for federal tax purposes, or for which the taxpayer has received reim bursement
39 fr om a qualified organization. A taxpayer claiming the tax cre dit under this section
40 shall submit copies of receip ts and mileage logs for the qualified amount, as well as
41 documentation of any portion of such costs that have been rei mbursed by the qualified
42 organization or recei pt of other tax benefit, in a standardized format or form
43 established by the department.
44 4. The cumulative amount of tax cr edits allowed to all taxpayers under this
45 section shall not exceed one million dollars per fiscal year , with such cumulative amount
46 incr eased annually per fiscal year for inflation by an amount equal to the per centage
47 change in the fiscal year average of the CPI, or zer o, whichever is great er . The
48 department shall calculate and publish this amount not later than October first each
49 year . If the amount of tax cred its claimed in a fiscal year under this section exceeds the
50 total cumulative cap, as adjusted under this subsection, tax credi ts shall be allowed
51 based on the order in which they ar e claimed.
52 5. Notwithstanding any pro vision of section 105.1500 to the contrary , any
53 r equir ement to pr ovide information, documents, or rec ords under this section, and any
54 r equir ement established by the Department of Revenue to pr ovide information,
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55 documents, or r ecords for the purpose of administering and enforcing this section, shall
56 be exempt fr om section 105.1500.
57 6. The department may promul gate rules to implement the pr ovisions of this
58 section. Any rule or portion of a rule, as that term is defined in section 536.010, that is
59 cr eated under the authority delegated in this section shall become effective only if it
60 complies with and is subject to all of the pr ovisions of chapter 536 and, if applicable,
61 section 536.028. This section and chapter 536 are nonseverable and if any of the powers
62 vested with the general assembly pursuant to chapter 536 to revi ew , to delay the
63 effective date, or to disappr ove and annul a rule are subsequently held unconstitutional,
64 then the grant of rulemaking authority and any rule pro posed or adopted after August
65 28, 2026, shall be invalid and void.
66 7. Under section 23.253 of the Missouri sunset act:
67 (1) The prov isions of the new pr ogram authorized under this section shall sunset
68 six years after the effective date of this section unless reauthori zed by an act of the
69 general assembly;
70 (2) This section shall terminate on September first of the calendar year
71 immediately following the calendar year in which the prog ram authorized under this
72 section is sunset; and
73 (3) Nothing in this subsection shall prev ent a taxpayer fr om claiming a tax credit
74 pr operly issued before this pr ogram was sunset in a tax year after the prog ram is sunset.
✔
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