FIRST REGULAR SESSION
95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVES YATES (Sponsor), KRAUS, GRISAMORE, DUSENBERG AND LeVOTA (Co-sponsors).
1189L.01 D. ADAM CRUMBLISS, Chief Clerk
AN ACT
To repeal section 620.1881, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof three new sections relating to certain tax credit programs administered by the department of economic development.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Section 620.1881, RSMo, is repealed and three new sections enacted in lieu thereof, to be known as sections 348.273, 348.274, and 620.1881, to read as follows:
348.273. As used in sections 348.273 and 348.274, the following terms shall mean:
(1) "Cash investment", money or money equivalent in consideration for qualified securities;
(2) "Department", the Missouri department of economic development;
(3) "Distressed community", as defined in section 135.530, RSMo;
(4) "Investor", an individual who is an accredited investor, as defined in 17 CFR 230.501(a) as in effect on August 28, 2009, who seeks high returns through private investments in start-up companies and may seek active involvement in business, such as consulting and mentoring the entrepreneur;
(5) "Qualified Missouri business", a business that:
(a) Has not had annual gross revenues of more than five million dollars in the most recent tax year of the business;
(b) Has been in operation for less than five years;
(c) Does not have ownership interests including, but not limited to, common or preferred shares of stock that can be traded by the public via a stock exchange, electronic exchange, bulletin board, or other public marketplace on or before the date that a qualifying investment is made;
(d) Does not engage primarily in any one or more of the following enterprises:
a. A service provider, as defined in this section;
b. The business of banking, savings and loan or lending institutions, credit or finance, or financial brokerage or investments;
c. The provision of professional services, such as legal, accounting or engineering services;
d. Governmental, charitable, religious, or trade organizations;
e. The ownership, development, brokerage, sales or leasing of real estate;
f. Insurance;
g. Construction or construction management or contracting;
h. Business consulting or brokerage;
i. Any business engaged primarily as a passive business, having irregular or noncontinuous operations, or deriving substantially all of the income of the business from passive investments that generate interest, dividends, royalties, or capital gains, or any business arrangements the effect of which is to immunize an investor from risk of loss;
j. Any activity that is in violation of the law; and
k. Any business raising money primarily to purchase real estate, land, or fixtures; and
(e) Falls within a standard industrial classification code;
(6) "Qualified securities", a cash investment through one or more forms of financial assistance and that have been approved in form and substance by the department. Such forms of financial assistance include:
(a) Any form of equity, such as:
a. A general or limited partnership interest;
b. Common stock;
c. Preferred stock, with or without voting rights, without regard to seniority position, and whether or not convertible into common stock; or
d. Convertible debt; or
(b) A debt instrument, such as a note or debenture that is secured or unsecured, subordinated to the general creditors of the debtor and requires no payments of principal, other than principal payments required to be made out of any future profits of the debtor, for at least a seven-year period after commencement of such debt instrument's term;
(7) "Rural area", any city, town, or village with fewer than fifteen thousand inhabitants and located in any county that is not part of a standard metropolitan statistical area as defined by the United States Department of Commerce or its successor agency. However, any such city, town, or village located in any county so defined as a standard metropolitan statistical area may be designated a rural area by the office of rural development if:
(a) A substantial number of persons in such county derive their income from agriculture;
(b) The county has only one city within the county having a population of more than fifteen thousand and is classified as a standard metropolitan statistical area; and
(c) All other cities, towns, and villages in that county have a population of less than fifteen thousand;
(8) "Service provider", services rendered by a person duly licensed, registered, or certified by this state as a member of any of the following professions:
(a) A certified public accountant;
(b) An architect;
(c) An attorney-at-law;
(d) A chiropractor;
(e) A dentist;
(f) An engineer;
(g) An optometrist;
(h) An osteopathic physician or surgeon;
(i) A physician, surgeon, or doctor of medicine;
(j) A veterinarian;
(k) A podiatrist;
(l) A pharmacist;
(m) A land surveyor;
(n) A licensed psychologist;
(o) A specialist in clinical social work;
(p) A licensed physical therapist;
(q) A landscape architect;
(r) A registered professional nurse;
(s) A real estate broker or salesperson;
(t) A geologist;
(u) A marriage counselor;
(v) A licensed physician assistant;
(w) A licensed occupational therapist;
(x) A licensed audiologist; and
(y) A licensed speech-pathologist.
348.274. 1. The department may authorize tax credits to encourage equity investment into technology-based early stage Missouri companies.
2. If a qualified Missouri business is approved by the department, the investors who contribute in equity investment in the qualified Missouri business may be issued a tax credit in the year the equity investment is made. The tax credit shall be in a total amount equal to fifty percent of such investors' equity investment in any qualified Missouri business, subject to the limitations set forth in subsection 5 of this section.
3. (1) Before an investor may be entitled to receive tax credits, as authorized by this section, such investor shall have made an equity investment in a qualified security of a qualified Missouri business. This business shall have been approved by the department as a qualified Missouri business prior to the date on which the cash investment was made. To be designated as a qualified Missouri business, a business shall make application to the department in accordance with the provisions of this section. Such application shall be in form and substance as required by the department but shall include at least the following:
(a) The name of the business and certified copies of the organizational documents of the business;
(b) A business plan, including a description of the business and the management, product, market, and financial plan of the business;
(c) A statement of the business innovative and proprietary technology, product, or service;
(d) A statement of the potential economic impact of the enterprise including the number, location, and types of jobs expected to be created;
(e) A description of the qualified securities to be issued, the consideration to be paid for the qualified securities, the amount of any tax credits requested, and the earliest year in which the tax credits may be redeemed;
(f) A statement of the amount, timing, and projected use of the proceeds to be raised from the proposed sale of qualified securities; and
(g) Other information as the department may request, such as the names, addresses, and taxpayer identification numbers of all investors who may qualify for the tax credit. Such list of investors who may qualify for the tax credits shall be amended as new qualified securities are sold or as any information on the list changes.
(2) No business shall be designated as a qualified Missouri business unless such business meets all of the following criteria:
(a) The business shall not have had annual gross revenues of more than three million dollars in the most recent tax year of the business;
(b) The business shall not have ownership interests including, but not limited to, common or preferred shares of stock that can be traded by the public via a stock exchange, electronic exchange, bulletin board, or other public market place on or before the date that a qualifying investment is made;
(c) The business shall not be engaged primarily in any one or more of the following enterprises:
a. The business of banking, savings and loan or lending institutions, credit or finance, or financial brokerage or investments;
b. Professional services, such as legal, accounting or engineering services;
c. Governmental, charitable, religious or trade organizations;
d. The ownership, development, brokerage, sales, or leasing of real estate;
e. Insurance;
f. Construction or construction management or contracting;
g. Business consulting or brokerage;
h. Any business engaged primarily as a passive business, having irregular or noncontinuous operations, or deriving substantially all of the income of the business from passive investments that generate interest, dividends, royalties, or capital gains, or any business arrangements the effect of which is to immunize an investor from risk of loss;
i. Any Missouri certified capital formation company;
j. Any activity that is in violation of the law; and
k. Any business raising money primarily to purchase real estate, land, or fixtures;
(d) The business shall satisfy all other requirements of this section.
(3) The portions of documents and other materials submitted to the department that contain trade secrets shall be kept confidential and shall be maintained in a secured environment by the director of the department. For the purposes of this section, such portions of documents and other materials shall mean any customer list, any formula, compound, production data, or compilation of information certain individuals within a commercial concern using such portions of documents and other material means to fabricate, produce, or compound an article of trade, or, any service having commercial value, which gives the user an opportunity to obtain a business advantage over competitors who do not know or use such service.
(4) A qualified Missouri business shall have the burden of proof to demonstrate to the department the qualifications of the business under this section and shall have the obligation to notify the department in a timely manner of any changes in the qualifications of the business or in the eligibility of investors to claim a tax credit for cash investment in a qualified security.
4. The designation of a business as a qualified Missouri business shall be made by the department, and such designation shall be renewed annually. A business shall be so designated if the department determines, based upon the application submitted by the business and any additional investigation the staff of the department shall make, that the following criteria have been or shall be satisfied:
(1) The business has a reasonable chance of success;
(2) The ability of investors in the business to receive tax credits for cash investments in qualified securities of the business is necessary because funding otherwise available for the business is not available on commercially reasonable terms;
(3) The business has the reasonable potential to create measurable employment within the state;
(4) The business has an innovative and proprietary technology, product, and service;
(5) The existing owners of the business and other founders have made or are committed to make a substantial financial and time commitment to the business;
(6) The securities to be issued and purchased are qualified securities; and
(7) Binding commitments have been made by the business to the department for adequate reporting of financial data, including a requirement for an annual report, or, if required by the department, an annual audit of the financial and operational records of the business, the right of access to the financial records of the business, and the right of the department to record and publish normal and customary data and information related to the issuance of tax credits that are not otherwise determined to be trade or business secrets;
5. The department shall not issue tax credits of more than fifty thousand dollars to an investor per investment into a single, qualified Missouri company, or for tax credits totaling more than two hundred fifty thousand dollars in a single year per investor. The total amount of tax credits that may be allowed under this section shall not exceed six million dollars per tax year until 2016.
6. This tax credit may be used in its entirety in the taxable year in which the equity investment is made or the credit may be carried forward for use in any of the next three consecutive tax years until the total amount of the credit is used. The tax credits may be sold, assigned, exchanged, or otherwise transferred.
7. Tax credits may be used against the tax otherwise due under chapter 143, RSMo, not including sections 143.191 to 143.265, RSMo.
8. A qualified Missouri business for which credits have been issued that, within seven years of receiving tax credits under this section relocates its headquarters out of Missouri, ceases to employ eighty percent of its employees in Missouri, alters the principal nature of its operations, or divests itself of key assets shall upon demand by the department pay the state of Missouri an amount equal to the amount of credits issued to its contributors.
9. The reasonable costs of the administration of this section, the review of applications for certification as qualified Missouri businesses, and the issuance of tax credits authorized by this section shall be reimbursed through fees paid by the qualified Missouri businesses and the investors or the transferees of investors, according to a reasonable fee schedule adopted by the department.
10. In addition to reports by the businesses to the department, the department shall also provide in its annual report information on the marketing and use of the investor tax credits. This report shall include the following:
(1) The amount of tax credits used in the previous fiscal year including what percentage was claimed by individuals and what percentage was claimed by firms and other entities;
(2) The types of businesses that benefited from the tax credits; and
(3) Any aggregate job creation or capital investment in Missouri that resulted from the use of the tax credits for a period of five years beginning from the date on which the tax credits were awarded.
In addition, the annual report shall provide information regarding what businesses deriving a benefit from the tax credits remained in Missouri, what businesses ceased doing business, what businesses were purchased, and what businesses may have moved out-of-state and the reason for such move.
620.1881. 1. The department of economic development shall respond within thirty days to a company who provides a notice of intent with either an approval or a rejection of the notice of intent. The department shall give preference to qualified companies and projects targeted at an area of the state which has recently been classified as a disaster area by the federal government. Failure to respond on behalf of the department of economic development shall result in the notice of intent being deemed an approval for the purposes of this section. A qualified company who is provided an approval for a project shall be allowed a benefit as provided in this program in the amount and duration provided in this section. A qualified company may receive additional periods for subsequent new jobs at the same facility after the full initial period if the minimum thresholds are met as set forth in sections 620.1875 to 620.1890. There is no limit on the number of periods a qualified company may participate in the program, as long as the minimum thresholds are achieved and the qualified company provides the department with the required reporting and is in proper compliance for this program or other state programs. A qualified company may elect to file a notice of intent to start a new project period concurrent with an existing project period if the minimum thresholds are achieved and the qualified company provides the department with the required reporting and is in proper compliance for this program and other state programs; however, the qualified company may not receive any further benefit under the original approval for jobs created after the date of the new notice of intent, and any jobs created before the new notice of intent may not be included as new jobs for the purpose of benefit calculation in relation to the new approval.
2. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, any qualified company that is awarded benefits under this program may not simultaneously receive tax credits or exemptions under sections 135.100 to 135.150, sections 135.200 to 135.286, section 135.535, or sections 135.900 to 135.906, RSMo, at the same project facility. The benefits available to the company under any other state programs for which the company is eligible and which utilize withholding tax from the new jobs of the company must first be credited to the other state program before the withholding retention level applicable under the Missouri quality jobs act will begin to accrue. These other state programs include, but are not limited to, the new jobs training program under sections 178.892 to 178.896, RSMo, the job retention program under sections 178.760 to 178.764, RSMo, the real property tax increment allocation redevelopment act, sections 99.800 to 99.865, RSMo, or the Missouri downtown and rural economic stimulus act under sections 99.915 to 99.980, RSMo. If any qualified company also participates in the new jobs training program in sections 178.892 to 178.896, RSMo, the company shall retain no withholding tax, but the department shall issue a refundable tax credit for the full amount of benefit allowed under this subdivision. The calendar year annual maximum amount of tax credits which may be issued to a qualifying company that also participates in the new job training program shall be increased by an amount equivalent to the withholding tax retained by that company under the new jobs training program. However, if the combined benefits of the quality jobs program and the new jobs training program exceed the projected state benefit of the project, as determined by the department of economic development through a cost-benefit analysis, the increase in the maximum tax credits shall be limited to the amount that would not cause the combined benefits to exceed the projected state benefit. Any taxpayer who is awarded benefits under this program who knowingly hires individuals who are not allowed to work legally in the United States shall immediately forfeit such benefits and shall repay the state an amount equal to any state tax credits already redeemed and any withholding taxes already retained.
3. The types of projects and the amount of benefits to be provided are:
(1) Small and expanding business projects: in exchange for the consideration provided by the new tax revenues and other economic stimuli that will be generated by the new jobs created by the program, a qualified company may retain an amount equal to the withholding tax as calculated under subdivision (33) of section 620.1878 from the new jobs that would otherwise be withheld and remitted by the qualified company under the provisions of sections 143.191 to 143.265, RSMo, for a period of three years from the date the required number of new jobs were created if the average wage of the new payroll equals or exceeds the county average wage or for a period of five years from the date the required number of new jobs were created if the average wage of the new payroll equals or exceeds one hundred twenty percent of the county average wage;
(2) Technology business projects: in exchange for the consideration provided by the new tax revenues and other economic stimuli that will be generated by the new jobs created by the program, a qualified company may retain an amount equal to a maximum of five percent of new payroll for a period of five years from the date the required number of jobs were created from the withholding tax of the new jobs that would otherwise be withheld and remitted by the qualified company under the provisions of sections 143.191 to 143.265, RSMo, if the average wage of the new payroll equals or exceeds the county average wage. An additional one-half percent of new payroll may be added to the five percent maximum if the average wage of the new payroll in any year exceeds one hundred twenty percent of the county average wage in the county in which the project facility is located, plus an additional one-half percent of new payroll may be added if the average wage of the new payroll in any year exceeds one hundred forty percent of the average wage in the county in which the project facility is located. The department shall issue a refundable tax credit for any difference between the amount of benefit allowed under this subdivision and the amount of withholding tax retained by the company, in the event the withholding tax is not sufficient to provide the entire amount of benefit due to the qualified company under this subdivision. The calendar year annual maximum amount of tax credits that may be issued to any qualified company for a project or combination of projects is five hundred thousand dollars;
(3) High impact projects: in exchange for the consideration provided by the new tax revenues and other economic stimuli that will be generated by the new jobs created by the program, a qualified company may retain an amount from the withholding tax of the new jobs that would otherwise be withheld and remitted by the qualified company under the provisions of sections 143.191 to 143.265, RSMo, equal to three percent of new payroll for a period of five years from the date the required number of jobs were created if the average wage of the new payroll equals or exceeds the county average wage of the county in which the project facility is located. The percentage of payroll allowed under this subdivision shall be three and one-half percent of new payroll if the average wage of the new payroll in any year exceeds one hundred twenty percent of the county average wage in the county in which the project facility is located. The percentage of payroll allowed under this subdivision shall be four percent of new payroll if the average wage of the new payroll in any year exceeds one hundred forty percent of the county average wage in the county in which the project facility is located. An additional one percent of new payroll may be added to these percentages if local incentives equal between ten percent and twenty-four percent of the new direct local revenue; an additional two percent of new payroll is added to these percentages if the local incentives equal between twenty-five percent and forty-nine percent of the new direct local revenue; or an additional three percent of payroll is added to these percentages if the local incentives equal fifty percent or more of the new direct local revenue. The department shall issue a refundable tax credit for any difference between the amount of benefit allowed under this subdivision and the amount of withholding tax retained by the company, in the event the withholding tax is not sufficient to provide the entire amount of benefit due to the qualified company under this subdivision. The calendar year annual maximum amount of tax credits that may be issued to any qualified company for a project or combination of projects is seven hundred fifty thousand dollars. The calendar year annual maximum amount of tax credit that may be issued to any qualified company for a project or combination of projects may be increased up to one million dollars if the number of new jobs will exceed five hundred and if such action is proposed by the department and approved by the quality jobs advisory task force established in section 620.1887; provided, however, until such time as the initial at-large members of the quality jobs advisory task force are appointed, this determination shall be made by the director of the department of economic development. In considering such a request, the task force shall rely on economic modeling and other information supplied by the department when requesting the increased limit on behalf of the project;
(4) Job retention projects: a qualified company may receive a tax credit for the retention of jobs in this state, provided the qualified company and the project meets all of the following conditions:
(a) For each of the twenty-four months preceding the year in which application for the program is made the qualified company must have maintained at least one thousand full-time employees at the employer's site in the state at which the jobs are based, and the average wage of such employees must meet or exceed the county average wage;
(b) The qualified company retained at the project facility the level of full-time employees that existed in the taxable year immediately preceding the year in which application for the program is made;
(c) The qualified company is considered to have a significant statewide effect on the economy, and has been determined to represent a substantial risk of relocation from the state by the quality jobs advisory task force established in section 620.1887; provided, however, until such time as the initial at-large members of the quality jobs advisory task force are appointed, this determination shall be made by the director of the department of economic development;
(d) The qualified company in the project facility will cause to be invested a minimum of seventy million dollars in new investment prior to the end of two years or will cause to be invested a minimum of thirty million dollars in new investment prior to the end of two years and maintain an annual payroll of at least seventy million dollars during each of the years for which a credit is claimed; and
(e) The local taxing entities shall provide local incentives of at least fifty percent of the new direct local revenues created by the project over a ten-year period.
The quality jobs advisory task force may recommend to the department of economic development that appropriate penalties be applied to the company for violating the agreement. The amount of the job retention credit granted may be equal to up to fifty percent of the amount of withholding tax generated by the full-time jobs at the project facility for a period of five years. The calendar year annual maximum amount of tax credit that may be issued to any qualified company for a job retention project or combination of job retention projects shall be seven hundred fifty thousand dollars per year, but the maximum amount may be increased up to one million dollars if such action is proposed by the department and approved by the quality jobs advisory task force established in section 620.1887; provided, however, until such time as the initial at-large members of the quality jobs advisory task force are appointed, this determination shall be made by the director of the department of economic development. In considering such a request, the task force shall rely on economic modeling and other information supplied by the department when requesting the increased limit on behalf of the job retention project. In no event shall the total amount of all tax credits issued for the entire job retention program under this subdivision exceed three million dollars annually. Notwithstanding the above, no tax credits shall be issued for job retention projects approved by the department after August 30, 2013;
(5) Small business job retention and flood survivor relief: a qualified company may receive a tax credit under sections 620.1875 to 620.1890 for the retention of jobs and flood survivor relief in this state for each job retained over a three-year period, provided that:
(a) The qualified company did not receive any state or federal benefits, incentives, or tax relief or abatement in locating its facility in a flood plain;
(b) The qualified company and related companies have fewer than one hundred employees at the time application for the program is made;
(c) The average wage of the qualified company's and related companies' employees must meet or exceed the county average wage;
(d) All of the qualified company's and related companies' facilities are located in this state;
(e) The facilities at the primary business site in this state have been directly damaged by floodwater rising above the level of a five hundred year flood at least two years, but fewer than eight years, prior to the time application is made;
(f) The qualified company made significant efforts to protect the facilities prior to any impending danger from rising floodwaters;
(g) For each year it receives tax credits under sections 620.1875 to 620.1890, the qualified company and related companies retained, at the company's facilities in this state, at least the level of full-time, year-round employees that existed in the taxable year immediately preceding the year in which application for the program is made; and
(h) In the years it receives tax credits under sections 620.1875 to 620.1890, the company cumulatively invests at least two million dollars in capital improvements in facilities and equipment located at such facilities that are not located within a five hundred year flood plain as designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and amended from time to time.
The amount of the small business job retention and flood survivor relief credit granted may be equal to up to one hundred percent of the amount of withholding tax generated by the full-time jobs at the project facility for a period of three years. The calendar year annual maximum amount of tax credit that may be issued to any qualified company for a small business job retention and survivor relief project shall be two hundred fifty thousand dollars per year, but the maximum amount may be increased up to five hundred thousand dollars if such action is proposed by the department and approved by the quality jobs advisory task force established in section 620.1887. In considering such a request, the task force shall rely on economic modeling and other information supplied by the department when requesting an increase in the limit on behalf of the small business job retention and flood survivor relief project. In no event shall the total amount of all tax credits issued for the entire small business job retention and flood survivor relief program under this subdivision exceed five hundred thousand dollars annually. Notwithstanding the provisions of this subdivision to the contrary, no tax credits shall be issued for small business job retention and flood survivor relief projects approved by the department after August 30, 2010.
4. The qualified company shall provide an annual report of the number of jobs and such other information as may be required by the department to document the basis for the benefits of this program. The department may withhold the approval of any benefits until it is satisfied that proper documentation has been provided, and shall reduce the benefits to reflect any reduction in full-time employees or new payroll. Upon approval by the department, the qualified company may begin the retention of the withholding taxes when it reaches the minimum number of new jobs and the average wage exceeds the county average wage. Tax credits, if any, may be issued upon satisfaction by the department that the qualified company has exceeded the county average wage and the minimum number of new jobs. In such annual report, if the average wage is below the county average wage, the qualified company has not maintained the employee insurance as required, or if the number of new jobs is below the minimum, the qualified company shall not receive tax credits or retain the withholding tax for the balance of the benefit period. In the case of a qualified company that initially filed a notice of intent and received an approval from the department for high impact benefits and the minimum number of new jobs in an annual report is below the minimum for high impact projects, the company shall not receive tax credits for the balance of the benefit period but may continue to retain the withholding taxes if it otherwise meets the requirements of a small and expanding business under this program.
5. [The maximum calendar year annual tax credits issued for the entire program shall not exceed sixty million dollars.] Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the maximum annual tax credits authorized under section 135.535, RSMo, are hereby reduced from ten million dollars to eight million dollars, with the balance of two million dollars transferred to this program. There shall be no limit on the amount of withholding taxes that may be retained by approved companies under this program.
6. The department shall allocate the annual tax credits based on the date of the approval, reserving such tax credits based on the department's best estimate of new jobs and new payroll of the project, and the other factors in the determination of benefits of this program. However, the annual issuance of tax credits is subject to the annual verification of the actual new payroll. The allocation of tax credits for the period assigned to a project shall expire if, within two years from the date of commencement of operations, or approval if applicable, the minimum thresholds have not been achieved. The qualified company may retain authorized amounts from the withholding tax under this section once the minimum new jobs thresholds are met for the duration of the project period. No benefits shall be provided under this program until the qualified company meets the minimum new jobs thresholds. In the event the qualified company does not meet the minimum new job threshold, the qualified company may submit a new notice of intent or the department may provide a new approval for a new project of the qualified company at the project facility or other facilities.
7. For a qualified company with flow-through tax treatment to its members, partners, or shareholders, the tax credit shall be allowed to members, partners, or shareholders in proportion to their share of ownership on the last day of the qualified company's tax period.
8. Tax credits may be claimed against taxes otherwise imposed by chapters 143 and 148, RSMo, and may not be carried forward but shall be claimed within one year of the close of the taxable year for which they were issued, except as provided under subdivision (4) of subsection 3 of this section.
9. Tax credits authorized by this section may be transferred, sold, or assigned by filing a notarized endorsement thereof with the department that names the transferee, the amount of tax credit transferred, and the value received for the credit, as well as any other information reasonably requested by the department.
10. Prior to the issuance of tax credits, the department shall verify through the department of revenue, or any other state department, that the tax credit applicant does not owe any delinquent income, sales, or use tax or interest or penalties on such taxes, or any delinquent fees or assessments levied by any state department and through the department of insurance, financial institutions and professional registration that the applicant does not owe any delinquent insurance taxes. Such delinquency shall not affect the authorization of the application for such tax credits, except that at issuance credits shall be first applied to the delinquency and any amount issued shall be reduced by the applicant's tax delinquency. If the department of revenue or the department of insurance, financial institutions and professional registration, or any other state department, concludes that a taxpayer is delinquent after June fifteenth but before July first of any year and the application of tax credits to such delinquency causes a tax deficiency on behalf of the taxpayer to arise, then the taxpayer shall be granted thirty days to satisfy the deficiency in which interest, penalties, and additions to tax shall be tolled. After applying all available credits toward a tax delinquency, the administering agency shall notify the appropriate department and that department shall update the amount of outstanding delinquent tax owed by the applicant. If any credits remain after satisfying all insurance, income, sales, and use tax delinquencies, the remaining credits shall be issued to the applicant, subject to the restrictions of other provisions of law.
11. Except as provided under subdivision (4) of subsection 3 of this section, the director of revenue shall issue a refund to the qualified company to the extent that the amount of credits allowed in this section exceeds the amount of the qualified company's income tax.
12. An employee of a qualified company will receive full credit for the amount of tax withheld as provided in section 143.211, RSMo.
13. If any provision of sections 620.1875 to 620.1890 or application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity shall not affect other provisions or application of these sections which can be given effect without the invalid provisions or application, and to this end, the provisions of sections 620.1875 to 620.1890 are hereby declared severable.
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