AN ACT relating to the establishment and funding of Health initiatives, making an appropriation therefor, and declaring an emergency.
     Create new sections of KRS Chapter 142 to impose a tax of 32% of the gross receipts of wholesale sales of smokeless tobacco, cigars, loose tobacco, and pipe tobacco; specify that funds received shall be deposited into a new children's dental care fund; exempt sales between wholesalers and distributors; require certificate of registration; require tax returns; permit time extension for filing tax returns; require interest on tax not paid by date due; permit offset payments; require wholesalers and distributors to keep records for four years; permit tax refunds and credits; permit civil penalties for violations; amend KRS 138.140 to impose a surtax of $0.75 per pack of cigarettes; specify that funds received shall be deposited into a new Commonwealth fund; amend KRS 138.146 to specify that the tax evidence compensation remains at $.30 per $3; require the $0.75 tax to be paid at the time of purchase of tax evidence stamps; amend KRS 248.652 to specify the $0.03 tax remains credited to the agriculture diversification and development fund; amend KRS 438.335 to specify that the Department of Agriculture retains $0.0005 of the $0.03 tax; amend KRS 438.337 to specify that the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control retains $0.0005 of the $0.03 tax; create new sections of KRS Chapter 41 to establish a children's dental care fund from the tax imposed on smokeless tobacco, cigars, loose and pipe tobacco; create a Commonwealth fund from the surtax imposed on cigarettes and specify use of this cigarette tax money for mental health and substance abuse services, Medicaid health care services, cost-of-living pay raises for certified and classified public school employees, smoking prevention and cessation, public school construction or renovation for local school districts with growth in enrollment, veterans' nursing homes, university medical schools for cancer research, and the state general fund; require any agency or entity receiving moneys from the Commonwealth fund to report on use of the funds; create a new section of KRS Chapter 194A to require the Department for Public Health to administer the children's dental fund for children whose family income is below 250% of the federal poverty level, and require the Cabinet for Health Services to report on the use of funds; provide that the new cigarette and tobacco taxes take effect January 1, 2005; EMERGENCY; APPROPRIATION.

     Oct 13-introduced in House; to Appropriations and Revenue (H)