PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE JARED WYRICK SUPPORTING AND ADVOCATING FOR WEST VIRGINIA T his year is off to a great start! WVADA had many successes on the legislative front. We passed six out of seven of our bills, and we defeated the Right to Repair bill. The one bill that we did not get across the finish line was our franchise bill, S.B. 462 — modifying certain guidelines for motor vehicle dealers, distributors, wholesalers, and manufacturers. Our franchise bill passed out of the Senate unanimously and passed out of the House Judiciary Committee with only one “no” vote. The one “no” vote was from Delegate Evan Hansen, D-Monongalia. Delegate Hansen viewed the elimination of the right of first refusal (ROFR) language as discriminatory. Obviously, discrimination is not the intent of eliminating ROFR, and we are committed to working with several members of the House to make sure that we achieve a compromise that works in the best interest of all parties. However, the bill ultimately died on the House Calendar on the second reading. The good news is that Deputy Speaker Rohrbach and Speaker Hanshaw have assured me that our franchise bill will run earlier next year on the House calendar to ensure passage. WVADA Bills — Passed and Completed Legislative Action • S.B. 151 — Levying tax on pass-through entity’s income (Completed Legislative Action — Awaiting Governor Signature) This bill allows pass-through entities to elect to be taxed at the entity level and to provide a refundable tax credit to owners or members of an electing pass-through entity on their individual tax returns. This would allow state income tax for partnerships and S corps to be paid at the entity level — allowing for a deduction at the federal level. Pass-through entities are such that the income “passes through” for tax purposes to the owners in relative shares of their ownership so that the income is taxed on the individuals’ personal income taxes. This bill allows entities to make an irrevocable (for the taxable year) election that all income be taxed at the entity level. A nonrefundable credit would be allowed to the individual owners for the tax on the income taxed at the entity level to avoid double taxation on those individuals’ personal income taxes. A similar credit is also available to individual owners based on their proportion of tax paid to another state at the entity level. • S.B. 335 — Modifying the State Police rule relating to modified vehicles’ inspections (Completed Legislative Action — Awaiting Governor Signature) This is a bill of authorization that amends a current rule regarding modified vehicle inspections. This change deletes the requirements that require a fender to cover the entire width of the tire of a modified vehicle. continued on page 8 wvcar.com 6
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