58.1-1009 - Preparation, design and sale of stamps; unlawful sale or purchase of stamps a felony; penalty.
§ 58.1-1009. Preparation, design and sale of stamps; unlawful sale orpurchase of stamps a felony; penalty.
A. The Department is hereby authorized and directed to have prepared and tosell stamps suitable for denoting the tax on all cigarettes. The Departmentshall design, adopt and promulgate the form and kind of stamps to be used.Stamps so adopted and promulgated shall be known as and termed "Virginiarevenue stamps," and in any information or indictment, it shall besufficient to describe the stamps as "Virginia revenue stamps."
Any person other than the Department who sells such revenue stamps, notaffixed to cigarettes sold and delivered by them, whether the said stamps begenuine or counterfeit, shall be guilty of a Class 6 felony. Any person whopurchases revenue stamps from anyone other than the Department, unless suchstamps are already affixed to cigarettes being purchased by and delivered tohim, or who uses or affixes, or causes to be used or affixed, any revenuestamps not purchased from the Department by the owner of the cigarettes beinghandled or stamped, whether such stamps are genuine or counterfeit, shall beguilty of a Class 6 felony. When stamping agents have qualified as such withthe Department, as provided in § 58.1-1011, and purchase stamps as prescribedherein for use on taxable cigarettes sold and delivered by them, theDepartment shall allow to each stamping agent on such sales of revenue stampsa discount equal to two percent of the total charged to the stamping agent bythe Department for the purchase of the revenue stamps. The Tax Commissionershall prepare for each fiscal year an estimate of the total amount of alldiscounts allowed to stamping agents pursuant to this subsection and suchamount shall be taken into consideration in preparing the official estimateof the total revenues to be collected during the fiscal year by the VirginiaHealth Care Fund established under § 32.1-366. Any reduction in fundingavailable for programs financed by the Virginia Health Care Fund as a resultof such discounts shall be made up by the general fund.
All stamps prescribed by the Department shall be designed and furnished insuch a fashion as to permit identification of the wholesale dealer or retaildealer that affixed the stamp to the particular package of cigarettes, bymeans of a serial number or other mark on the stamp. The Department shallmaintain for not less than three years information identifying whichwholesale dealer or retail dealer affixed the revenue stamp to each packageof cigarettes.
B. 1. The Department shall provide Virginia revenue stamps to certainwholesale dealers holding a current permit issued pursuant to § 58.1-1011prior to collecting the tax imposed under this chapter from such wholesaledealer. Such wholesale dealers shall be allowed to obtain the stamps from theDepartment without concurrent payment of the tax only if the conditions ofthis subsection are satisfied.
In order to obtain Virginia revenue stamps without concurrent payment of thetax imposed under this chapter, a wholesale dealer shall (i) file a bond witha corporate surety licensed to do business in Virginia, or (ii) file anirrevocable letter of credit satisfactory to the Tax Commissioner as to thebank or savings institution, the form and substance, and payable to theCommonwealth in the face amount of approximately two times the anticipatedaverage monthly amount in purchases of Virginia revenue stamps by thewholesale dealer as determined by the Commissioner. The letter of creditshall be from a bank incorporated or authorized to conduct banking businessunder the laws of the Commonwealth or authorized to do business in theCommonwealth under the banking laws of the United States, or a federallyinsured savings institution located in the Commonwealth. Such bond orirrevocable letter of credit shall be conditioned upon payment of the taximposed by this chapter relating to Virginia revenue stamps obtained by thewholesale dealer from the Department (without concurrent payment of the tax)for which such tax, net of any applicable discount described in subsection A,shall be paid within the 30 days immediately following the date that therelated revenue stamp or stamps were provided by the Department to suchwholesale dealer. Any such bond shall be so written that, on timely paymentof the premium thereon, it shall continue in force from year to year unlesssooner terminated.
2. Any surety on a bond filed by any wholesale dealer shall be released anddischarged from any and all liability to the Commonwealth accruing on suchbond after the expiration of 60 days from the date upon which such suretyshall have lodged with the Commissioner written request to be released anddischarged. But such request shall not operate to relieve, release ordischarge such surety from any liability already accrued or which shallaccrue before the expiration of such 60-day period. The Commissioner shall,promptly on receipt of such notice, notify the wholesale dealer who furnishedsuch bond. Unless such dealer on or before the expiration of such 60 days'notice files with the Commissioner a new bond or letter of credit that meetsall the conditions described in subdivision 1, the Commissioner shallforthwith require the wholesale dealer to pay the tax imposed under thischapter concurrent with obtaining revenue stamps from the Department.
In the event that liability upon the bond or letter of credit filed by thewholesale dealer with the Commissioner shall be discharged or reduced,whether by judgment rendered, payment made or otherwise, or if in the opinionof the Commissioner any surety on the bond becomes unsatisfactory orunacceptable, then the Commissioner may require the filing of a new bond orletter of credit. Unless such new bond or letter of credit meets all theconditions described in subdivision 1, the Commissioner shall forthwithrequire the wholesale dealer to pay the tax imposed under this chapterconcurrent with obtaining revenue stamps from the Department.
3. Notwithstanding any other provision in this subsection, the TaxCommissioner, for good cause, shall require a wholesale dealer to pay the taximposed under this chapter concurrent with obtaining revenue stamps from theDepartment, regardless of whether or not such dealer has filed or agreed tofile the bond or letter of credit described in this subsection.
C. In addition to any other penalties provided by law, the Department mayrevoke the permit issued, in accordance with § 58.1-1011, to any person whoviolates any provision of this section.
(Code 1950, §§ 58-757.8, 58-757.10; 1960, c. 392, §§ 8, 10; 1973, c. 3; 1984,c. 675; 2000, cc. 880, 901; 2002, cc. 683, 722, 821; 2004, c. 1029; 2004, Sp.Sess. I, c. 3; 2005, c. 925.)