Section 8101-A - DefinitionsThe following words, terms and phrases when used in this article shall have the meaning ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
(1) "Department." The Department of Revenue of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.(2) "Public utility." Any person, partnership, association, corporation or other entity furnishing public utility service under the jurisdiction of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission or the corresponding regulatory agency of any other state or of the United States on December 31 of the taxable year; and any electric cooperative corporation furnishing public utility service on December 31 of the taxable year, but shall not mean any public utility furnishing public utility sewage services, or municipality or municipality authority furnishing public utility services.(3) "Utility realty." All lands, together with all buildings, towers, smokestacks, dams, dikes, canals, cooling towers, storage tanks, reactor structures, pump houses, supporting foundations, enclosing structures, supporting structures, containment structures, reactor containment outer shells, reactor containment vessels, turbine buildings, recovery tanks, solid waste area enclosures, primary auxiliary buildings, containment auxiliary safeguard structures, fuel buildings, decontamination buildings, and, all other structures and enclosures whatsoever which are physically affixed to the land, no matter how such structures and enclosures are designated and without regard to the classification thereof for local real estate taxation purposes, but not including machinery and equipment, whether or not housed within such building, structure or enclosure, or, after December 31, 1999, land and improvements to land that are indispensable to the generation of electricity, located within this Commonwealth that at the end of the taxable year are owned by a public utility or its affiliate either directly or by or through a subsidiary and are used or in the course of development or construction for use, in whole or in part, in the furnishing, including producing, storing, distributing or transporting, of public utility service and which are not subject to local real estate taxation under any law in effect on April 23, 1968: Provided, however, That the following specified items shall be exempt from the tax hereby imposed: (i) Easements or similar interests.(ii) Railroad beds or rails, land owned or used by a railroad as a right-of-way for a rail line and superstructures thereon. This subclause does not include stations, buildings, warehouses, shops, engine houses, plants or miscellaneous structures or the land appurtenant thereto.(iii) Pole, transmission tower, pipe, rail or other lines whether or not said lines are attached to the land or to any structure or enclosure which is physically affixed to the land.(4) "State taxable value." Current market value calculated by adjusting the assessed value for county real estate tax purposes for the taxable year for the common level ratio of assessed values to market values of the county as established by the State Tax Equalization Board after July 1 of the taxable year. During the pendency of an assessment appeal, the term means the amount which the public utility has stipulated or alleged as the current market value for the taxable year.(5) "Local taxing authority." A county, city, institution district, borough, town, township or school district having authority to impose taxes on real estate.(6) "Realty tax equivalent." The total amount of real estate taxes which a local taxing authority could have imposed on utility realty for its fiscal year beginning in the taxable year but for this article, and unless otherwise provided shall be the product of the real estate property tax rate and the assessed valuation of utility realty.(7) "Total tax receipts." The actual amount collected by a local taxing authority under all statutes authorizing the imposition of taxes, but shall not include fines, penalties, fees, licenses or receipts from any source other than taxes.(8) "Assessed valuation." The assessed valuation of utility realty for county real estate tax purposes contained in the last adjusted valuation for the taxable year.(9) "Millage rate." (i) An amount calculated by the department by dividing the amount of the total realty tax equivalent reported to the department under section 1106-A by the amount of the total State taxable value of all utility realty located within this Commonwealth reported under section 1102-A. The amount shall be calculated to four decimal places.(ii) For taxable year 1998, an amount calculated by the department by dividing the amount of the total State taxable value of all utility realty located within this Commonwealth reporting under section 1102-A into the greater of the total realty tax equivalent reported under section 1106-A or one hundred thirty-three million two hundred thousand dollars ($133,200,000).(10) "Affiliate." An affiliated interest as defined in 66 Pa.C.S. § 2101 (relating to definition of affiliated interest).(11) "Subsidiary." An entity: (i) in which a public utility or affiliate is the beneficial owner, directly or indirectly, of shares of the entity that would entitle the public utility or affiliate to cast in excess of fifty per cent of the votes that all shareholders would be entitled to cast in the election of directors of the entity; or(ii) which is a partnership, joint venture, limited liability company or similar entity, in which a public utility is a partner, is a participant, is a member or is in a similar relationship.(12) "Assessment authority." The board of revision of taxes, board for the assessment and revision of taxes of a county, county commissioners in a county with no board of revision of taxes or board for the assessment and revision of taxes, or council of a city of the third class that has not elected to accept county assessments.1971, March 4, P.L. 6, No. 2, art. XI-A, § 1101-A, added 1979, July 4, P.L. 60, No. 27, § 3, imd. effective. Amended 1982, Dec. 9, P.L. 1047, No. 246, § 5, effective 7/1/1983; 1999, May 12, P.L. 26, No. 4, § 16, imd. effective.