Tax tribunal, independent; work group convened to evaluate feasibility of establishing, report.

A BILL to require the Chairs of the House Committee on Finance and the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations to convene a work group to evaluate the feasibility of establishing an independent tax tribunal in the Commonwealth; report.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1.
§ 1.
The
Chairs
of the House Committee on Finance and the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations shall convene a work

group to evaluate the
feasibility of establishing an independent tax tribunal in the Commonwealth.
The work

group shall consist of
(i)
four members of the House of Delegates,
at least two of
who
m
shall be members of the House Committee on Finance
,
and

who
shall be
selected
by
the Chair of the House Committee on Finance
;

(ii)
three members of the Senate of Virginia,
at least two of whom shall be members of the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations, and
who
shall be selected by the Chair of the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations
;
(
iii)
the Tax Commissioner
or his designee
;
(iv)
two representatives from the
Tax Adjudication and Resolution Division of the
Department of Taxation
, to be selected by the Tax Commissioner
;

(v)
two attorneys who shall
each
have at least
five
years' experience in
litigating
tax
disputes
before the Department of Taxation,
one of whom shall be selected by the Chair of the House Committee on Finance, and the other
of
who
m
shall be selected by the Chair of the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations
;

(vi) two
representatives
from the Virginia Society of CPAs
, one of whom shall be selected by the Chair of the House Committee on Finance, and the other of whom shall be selected by the Chair of the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations
;
(vi
i
)
two
C
ertified
P
ublic
A
ccountant
s (CPAs)
who shall be residents of and employed within the Commonwealth,
one of whom shall be selected by the Chair of the House Committee on Finance, and the other
of
who
m
shall be selected by the Chair of the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations
;

(vii
i)
two
active judge
s
of a circuit court,
one of whom shall be selected by the Chair of the House Committee on Finance, and the other
of
who
m
shall be selected by the Chair of the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations
;
(
ix
)

the Secretary of Finance or his designee
;

(x) the Chair of the Tax
ation
Section of the Virginia Bar Association
;

(xi) the Chair of the

Taxation Section
of the
Virginia State Bar
;

and
(
x
i
i
) any other
stakeholders deemed relevant.
In evaluating the feasibility of establishing a tax tribunal in the Commonwealth, the work

group shall
:

1.
Review
the American Bar Association
's Model State Administrative Tax Tribunal Act (
August
2006)

and determine
(i)
whether the model suggested in such Act w
ould meet the needs of the Commonwealth and its residents in effectively and efficiently resol
ving state tax disputes
and
(
ii
) which provisions of the Act could be implemented in the
creation of an independent tax tribunal;

2.
Evaluate the
impacts of establishing
an independent tax tribunal, incl
uding
how the tribunal would fit in with and com
plement the Tax Adjudication and Resolution Division within the Department of Taxation
;

3.
Consider and estimate the costs
to the Commonwealth
for the establishment of and ongoing
funding
for
the operation of a tax tribunal
, including
facility costs for the housing of the tribunal,
the

salaries for eac
h
tribunal judge elected
or appointed to serve,
and
the salaries for any administrative or support staff
;

4.
Consider
a

process for
appeals of
decisions made by a tax tribunal judge, including
whether
to grant
appellate jurisdiction
to general district courts, circuit courts,

the Court of Appeals
of Virginia
,

or
the
Supreme Court of Virginia
;

5.
Determine the number of t
ribunal judges necessary to effectively and efficiently hear
tax disputes, estimate the number of support staff required to
effectuate the business of the tribunal
; and provide suggestions for the
appointment or election process of any tribunal judge, including the
qualifications for any individual considered for appointment or
election as a judge, the
appointing authority or electing body
,
and
the length of term to which a tribunal judge would be appointed or elected, and
suggest any
provisions for the retirement of a judge of the tribunal;

6. Evaluate the feasibility and implications of permitting Certified Public Accountants to represent taxpayers in disputes before the tax tribunal
, considering best practices as implemented in other states with an independent tax tribunal;
and

7.
Evaluate independent tax tribunal
s operating in other states,
compare
those established in the executive branch of their state
to tribunals operating
as an independent judicial body or court of record, and determine best practices for the

creation and
organization
of such a tribunal
and
for the adjudication of disputes concerning
the assessment of
state taxes
.

The work

group shall
conclude its meetings
by
November 1, 2027, and shall
submit a
summary
of its fin
dings and any recommendations in a report to the House Committee on Finance, the House Committee on Appropriations, the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations,
and the Governor no la
ter than
January 1, 2028.