§ 498. Imposition of excise tax. (a) There is hereby imposed an excise tax on the first sale of every opioid unit in the state at the following rates: (1) a quarter of a cent per morphine milligram equivalent where the wholesale acquisition cost is less than fifty cents, or (2) one and one-half cents per morphine milligram equivalent where the wholesale acquisition cost is fifty cents or more; except that such tax shall not apply when such first sale is to any program operated pursuant to Article 40 of the public health law and Article thirty-two of the mental hygiene law. The tax imposed by this article shall be charged against and paid by the registrant making such first sale, and shall accrue at the time of such sale. For the purpose of the proper administration of this article and to prevent evasion of the tax hereby imposed, it shall be presumed that any sale of an opioid unit in this state by a registrant is the first sale of such in the state until the contrary is established, and the burden of proving that any sale is not the first sale in the state shall be upon the registrant.

(b) Every registrant liable for the tax imposed by this article shall file with the commissioner a return on forms to be prescribed by the commissioner showing the total morphine milligram equivalent and wholesale acquisition costs of such opioid units that are subject to the tax imposed by this article, the amount of tax due thereon, and such further information as the commissioner may require. Such returns shall be filed for quarterly periods ending on the last day of March, June, September and December of each year. Each return shall be filed within twenty days after the end of such quarterly period and shall cover all opioid sales in the state made in the prior quarter, except that the first return required to be filed pursuant to this section shall be due on January twentieth, two thousand twenty, and shall cover all opioid sales occurring in the period between the effective date of this article and December thirty-first, two thousand nineteen. Every registrant required to file a return under this section shall, at the time of filing such return, pay to the commissioner the total amount of tax due for the period covered by such return. If a return is not filed when due, the tax shall be due the day on which the return is required to be filed. The commissioner may require that the returns and payments required by this section be filed or paid electronically.

(c) Where a sale of an opioid unit by a registrant has been cancelled by the purchaser and tax thereon was previously paid by the registrant, the commissioner shall allow to the registrant a refund or credit of such tax on a return for a later period subject to the limitations period for claiming a refund or credit as prescribed by section one thousand eighty-seven of this chapter. Where a registrant proves that an opioid unit for which it previously paid a tax has been distributed out of the state for use or consumption outside this state, the commissioner shall allow a credit to the registrant for tax paid on a return for a later period subject to the limitations period for claiming a credit as prescribed by section one thousand eighty-seven of this chapter.

(d) All sales slips, invoices, receipts, or other statements or memoranda of sale from any sale or purchase of opioid units by registrants must be retained for a period of six years after the due date of the return to which they relate, unless the commissioner provides for a different retention period by rule or regulation. Such records must be sufficient to determine the number of units transferred along with the morphine milligram equivalent of the units transferred, and otherwise be suitable to determine the correct amount of tax due. Such records must also record either (1) the address from which the units are shipped or delivered, along with the address to which the units are shipped or delivered, or (2) the place at which actual physical possession of the units is transferred. Such records shall be produced upon demand by the commissioner.

(e) The provisions of article twenty-seven of this chapter shall apply to the tax imposed by this article in the same manner and with the same force and effect as if the language of such article had been incorporated in full into this article and had expressly referred to the tax imposed by this article, except to the extent that any provision of such article twenty-seven is either inconsistent with a provision of this article or is not relevant to this article.

(f) The commissioners of education and health shall cooperate with the commissioner in administering this tax, including sharing with the commissioner pertinent information about registrants upon the request of the commissioner.

(g) Each registrant shall provide a report to the department of health detailing all opioids sold by such registrant in the state of New York. Such report shall include:

(i) the registrant's name, address, phone number, federal Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) registration number, education department registration number, and controlled substance license number issued by the department of health, if applicable;

(ii) the name, address and DEA registration number of the entity to whom the opioid was sold;

(iii) the date of the sale of the opioid;

(iv) the gross receipt total, in dollars, for each opioid sold;

(v) the name and National Drug Code of the opioid sold;

(vi) the number of containers and the strength and metric quantity of controlled substance in each container of the opioid sold;

(vii) the total number of morphine milligram equivalents sold; and

(viii) any other elements as deemed necessary by the commissioner of health.

Such information shall be reported annually in such form as defined by the commissioner of health and shall not be subject to the provisions of section four hundred ninety-nine of this article. With the exception of the information collected under paragraph (ii) of this subdivision, the department of health shall make the information collected in such reports available to the public in machine-readable formats and make it publicly available on the department of health's website annually.