2074

LAWS OF MARYLAND

Ch. 578

shall be apportioned among the counties and Baltimore City
according to the relative amount of deposits and/or share
accounts applicable to each county and Baltimore City, in
accordance with regulations adopted pursuant to subsection
(g) and the county or Baltimore City in which the branch
office is located shall be paid that share of the total. If
the bank or association has no branch offices, the total
payment shall be made to the county or Baltimore City in
which the one office of the bank or association is located.
All such payments shall be made to the board of county
commissioners or county council of the county or to the
mayor and city council of Baltimore, to be credited in each
instance to the general funds of the county or city.

(f)  The failure or wilful failure of a bank or
association to file a return or report or to pay a tax or
any portion of a tax, as required or due under this
[subtitle] SECTION, shall have the effect and be subject to
the procedures and penalties provided in §§ 320 and 322 and
elsewhere in the subtitle "Income Tax" in THIS Article [81
of this Code].

(g)  The Comptroller from time to time may adopt and
promulgate rules and regulations for the reporting and
collection of the franchise taxes imposed in this [subtitle]
SECTION and not inconsistent with the provisions of this
[subtitle] SECTION.

[Franchise Tax on Net Earnings of Financial
Institutions]

128A.

(a)  A franchise tax is hereby annually levied and
imposed for each fiscal year of the State beginning after
June 30, 1968, upon every domestic financial institution for
the privilege of existing as a corporation during any part
of the State's fiscal year, and upon every financial
institution organized under the laws of the United States or
another state or nation for the grant to it of the privilege
in corporate or organized form of transacting or for the
actual transaction by it of any business within this State
during any part of the State's fiscal year. "Financial
institution" as used in this [subtitle] SECTION shall
include all commercial banks, safe deposit and trust
companies, and finance corporations as defined in § 2(9) of
this article but shall not include domestic or foreign
finance corporations which make loans exclusively to farmers
for agricultural purposes or any corporation licensed under
the Small Business Investment Act of 1958, as amended (15
USCA 661 et seq., as amended).

(b)  The tax imposed by this [subtitle] SECTION shall
be measured by the net "earnings of such financial
institution for the taxpayer's annual accounting period,
whether calendar year or fiscal year as defined in § 279(h)
of this article, ending within the fiscal year of the State