Georgia § 48-13-141 - Excise tax on for-hire ground transport; annual adjustment; appropriation of proceeds for transit projects.

§ 48-13-141. Excise tax on for-hire ground transport; annual adjustment; appropriation of proceeds for transit projects.

On and after April 1, 2020, an excise tax in the amount of 50› shall be levied upon any for-hire ground transport trip and 25› upon any shared for-hire ground transport trip. Such excise tax shall be collected and remitted by the for-hire ground transport service provider itself and not the vehicle driver. Such excise tax shall be administered, collected, and due and payable in the same manner as would otherwise be required by the tax imposed under Article 1 of Chapter 8 of this title. The department shall annually adjust the amount of the excise tax levied pursuant to subsection (a) of this Code section to reflect the effect of annual inflation or deflation for the cost of living that consumers in this state experienced on average during the immediately preceding calendar year in accordance with rules and regulations. Such rules and regulations may use for this purpose the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers rate published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor or any other similar index established by the federal government, if the department determines that such federal index reflects the effect of inflation and deflation for the cost of living that consumers in this state experienced on average during the preceding calendar year. It is the intention of the General Assembly, subject to appropriations, that the proceeds of the tax levied pursuant to subsection (a) of this Code section shall be appropriated to a transit provider to be used exclusively for transit projects. If the amount collected under this Code section is ever not appropriated for a fiscal year as provided by subsection (c) of this Code section, as determined jointly by the House Budget and Research Office and the Senate Budget and Evaluation Office, then the amount levied shall be reduced by 50 percent. Upon the conclusion of a second fiscal year in which the amount collected is not so appropriated, this Code section shall stand repealed and reserved, and such fees shall cease to be levied on the date the appropriations Act for such fiscal year becomes effective. Such budget offices shall certify any such lack of appropriations to the Code Revision Commission for purposes of updating the Code in accordance with this subsection. (Code 1981, § 48-13-141 , enacted by Ga. L. 2020, p. 903, § 2-2/HB 105.)