[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5893 Introduced in House (IH)]
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114th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 5893
To regulate certain State impositions on interstate commerce.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 14, 2016
Mr. Sensenbrenner introduced the following bill; which was referred to
the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To regulate certain State impositions on interstate commerce.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``No Regulation Without Representation
Act of 2016''.
SEC. 2. MINIMUM JURISDICTIONAL STANDARDS FOR STATE AND LOCAL SALES AND
USE TAX COLLECTION.
(a) In General.--A State may--
(1) impose an obligation on a person for--
(A) the collection of a sales, use, or similar tax,
or
(B) the reporting of any information with respect
thereto, on a person,
(2) assess a sales, use or similar tax on a person, or
(3) treat a person as doing business in a State for
purposes of such a tax,
only if such person had a physical presence in the State during the
calendar quarter with respect to which the obligation or assessment is
imposed.
(b) Requirements for Physical Presence.--
(1) In general.--For purposes of subsection (a), a person
has a physical presence in a State only if such person's
business activities in the State include any of the following
during the calendar year--
(A) owns, holds a leasehold interest in, or
maintains real property such as a retail store,
warehouse, distribution center, manufacturing
operation, or assembly facility in the State;
(B) leases or owns tangible personal property
(other than computer software) of more than de minimis
value in the State;
(C) has one or more employees, agents or
independent contractors present in the State who engage
in specific solicitations toward obtaining product or
service orders from customers in that State, or
prospective customers in that State, on behalf of the
person;
(D) has one or more employees or independent
contractors present in the State who provide on-site
design, installation, or repair services on behalf of
the remote seller; or
(E) maintains an office in the State at which it
regularly employs three or more employees for any
purpose.
(2) De minimis physical presence.--For purposes of this
section, the term ``physical presence'' shall not include--
(A) entering into an agreement under which a
person, for a commission or other consideration,
directly or indirectly refers potential purchasers to a
person outside the State, whether by an Internet-based
link or platform, Internet Web site or otherwise;
(B) any presence in a State, as described in
section 2(b)(1), for less than 15 days in a taxable
year (or a greater number of days if provided by State
law);
(C) delivery and product placement services offered
by an interstate or in-State common carrier; and
(D) Internet advertising services provided by in-
State residents which are not exclusively directed
towards, or do not solicit exclusively, in-State
customers.
(c) Protection of Non-Sellers.--A State may not impose a sales or
use tax collection obligation, or an obligation to report any
information with respect thereto, on a person or assess a sales, use or
similar tax on any person other than a purchaser or a seller having a
physical presence in the State.
SEC. 3. DISPUTE RESOLUTION.
The district courts of the United States shall have original
jurisdiction over civil actions to enforce the provisions of this Act,
including authority to issue declaratory judgments pursuant to section
2201 of title 28, United States Code, and, notwithstanding the
provisions of section 1341 of such title, injunctive relief, as
necessary to carry out this Act.
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS AND EFFECTIVE DATE.
(a) Definitions.--For purposes of this Act:
(1) Marketplace provider.--The term ``marketplace
provider'' includes any person, other than a seller, who
facilitates a sale. For purposes of this subsection, a person
facilitates a sale when the person both--
(A) lists or advertises tangible personal property
and services for sale in any forum, including a catalog
or Internet Web site; and
(B) either directly or indirectly through
agreements or arrangements with third parties, collects
gross receipts from the customer and transmits those
receipts to the marketplace seller, whether or not such
person deducts any fees from the transmission of those
receipts to the marketplace seller.
(2) Marketplace seller.--The term ``marketplace seller''
means a person that has any sales facilitated by a marketplace
provider.
(3) Referrer.--The term ``referrer'' shall mean every
person who--
(A) contracts or otherwise agrees with a seller to
list multiple items of tangible personal property and
services for sale and the sales prices thereof in any
forum, including a catalog or Internet Web site;
(B) receives a fee, commission, or other
consideration from a seller for the listing;
(C) transfers, via telephone, Internet link, or
otherwise, a customer to the seller or the seller's Web
site to complete a purchase; and
(D) does not collect receipts from the customer for
the transaction.
(4) Person.--The term ``person'' has the meaning given such
term by section 1 of title 1 of the United States Code. Each
corporation that is a member of a group of affiliated
corporations, whether unitary or not, is itself a separate
``person''.
(5) Seller.--The term ``seller'' does not include--
(A) any marketplace provider;
(B) any referrer;
(C) any carrier, in which the seller does not have
an ownership interest, providing transportation or
delivery services with respect to tangible personal
property; and
(D) any credit card issuer, transaction or billing
processor, or other financial intermediary.
(6) Similar tax.--The term ``similar tax'' means a tax that
is imposed with respect to the sale or use of a product or
service, regardless whether the tax is imposed on the person
making the sale or the purchaser, with the right or obligation
of the person making the sale to obtain reimbursement for the
amount of the tax from the purchaser at the time of the
transaction.
(7) State.--The term ``State'' means the several States,
the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico,
Guam, American Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands, the
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and any other
territory or possession of the United States and includes the
State government or political subdivision entity responsible
for tax collection and audits.
(b) Effective Date.--This Act shall apply with respect to calendar
quarters beginning on or after January 1, 2017.
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