No; House Bill 95 eliminated the filing requirement for taxpayers with a listed value of $10,000 or less.

If tangible personal property is physically located at both Ohio locations, an Inter-County return - Form 945 - must be filed. NOTE: If one of the locations consists of real estate holdings only, a single county return - Form 920 - must be filed with the county where the tangible personal property is physically located.

No; but if your business is incorporated or a registered limited liability company or limited partnership you must dissolve your Ohio charter number or license through the Ohio Secretary of State’s office in order to be removed from the State’s tax records.

Yes, as long as it is used in business. The minimum value would continue to be reported until the property is disposed of, scrapped or sold.

The $10,000 exemption must first be applied to the taxing district exhibiting the highest value. The remainder of the exemption amount would be applied, in like manner, until exhausted.

Yes, there is a provision for filing an amended return. O.R.C. 5711.26 requires that a Request for Final Assessment must be made, in writing, to the Tax Commissioner (c/o The Ohio Department of Taxation), P.O. Box 530, Columbus OH, 43216-0530. This request must be filed within the statute of limitations (by the second Monday of August of the second calendar year after the year in which the return was originally assessed) and must include the latest assessment and proof that all taxes, penalties and interest have been paid. Example: The statute of limitations for a timely filed 2006 Personal Property tax return expires on the second Monday of August, 2008.

Possibly. O.R.C. 5709 contains the various types of organizations exempt from reporting personal property. However, if a non-profit organization is engaged in business to the extent that it uses any of it’s property in conducting activity that is in direct competition with a for-profit entity, the non-profit organization’s property will be subject to the Personal Property tax and must be reported. Example: A church bookstore sells religious books, placing it in direct competition with all other for-profit bookstores.

The Lessor (leasing company) is the owner and is required to report the property, unless the lessee (person leasing the property) is contractually required to purchase the property at the end of the lease. In that situation, the lessee is considered the owner and would report the property. A $1 purchase option at the end of the lease term is not considered to obligate the lessee to purchase the property.

The leasing company is the owner of the equipment, which requires them to report that equipment for taxation on their return. Contractual language in the Lease Agreement between the lessor (leasing company) and the lessee (company leasing the equipment) can require the lessee to reimburse the lessor for Personal Property taxes levied on the equipment being leased. If the $10,000 exemption cannot be applied to the taxing district where this particular equipment is located, the small company must reimburse the leasing company for the Personal Property taxes according to the terms of their signed lease agreement, even though the small company would not be required to file a Personal Property tax return themselves.

The Department is taking the position that all software is tangible personal property and, therefore, taxable. This not only covers canned (off-the-shelf) software, but customized software as well. This position has been stated in several recent Final Determinations and there are several cases pending before the Board of Tax Appeals where software is at issue.

If the ultimate result of pending litigation is that all software is, indeed, deemed to be part of the taxable personal property tax base, the department will alter it’s previous policy in the tax year immediately following the court decision and assess all software on a prospective (on-going) basis.