Late Thursday night, Governor John Kasich signed the Ohio Budget Bill (Am. Sub. H.B. 153) setting forth the state’s nearly $56 billion budget for the next two fiscal years. As expected, the bill included two significant provisions with respect to Ohio consumer use tax. First, Section 757.42 of the bill requires the Tax Commissioner to establish the Use Tax Amnesty Program allowing unregistered consumers to resolve their Ohio consumer use tax liability by paying the taxes owed from January 1, 2009 forward. Consumers registered to pay use tax prior to June 1, 2011 may take advantage of this program as well, but they may be required to pay interest and penalties. This amnesty program is more fully described in our post earlier this week. Additionally, the bill amends Section 5703.58(B) of the Revised Code to prohibit the issuance of a consumer use tax assessment for taxes owed prior to January 1, 2008, in all cases, even if the company is currently being audited. As both provisions are effective ninety days after the bill is filed with the Secretary of State, these protections are contingent on the Department of Taxation not issuing an assessment against the particular taxpayer prior to approximately September 29, 2011.

Also on the tax front, the Budget Bill eliminated the Ohio Estate Tax starting in 2013.

We will be provide further information and planning ideas with respect to these developments and other changes to Ohio state taxes contained in the Budget Bill in the near future, including details on the General Amnesty Program contained in Section 757.40 of the bill applicable to all Ohio taxes.