[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1603 Introduced in House (IH)]







104th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1603

 To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to correct mistakes which 
  inadvertently included certain ferries operating between Portland, 
 Maine, and Nova Scotia under the excise tax on the transportation of 
 passengers by water as opposed to the actual intent which was to tax 
           voyages the primary purpose of which is gambling.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 10, 1995

 Mr. Longley introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to correct mistakes which 
  inadvertently included certain ferries operating between Portland, 
 Maine, and Nova Scotia under the excise tax on the transportation of 
 passengers by water as opposed to the actual intent which was to tax 
           voyages the primary purpose of which is gambling.
    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. EXEMPTION FOR TRANSPORTATION ON CERTAIN FERRIES.

    (a) General Rule.--Subparagraph (B) of section 4472(1) of the 
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to exception for certain 
voyages on passenger vessels) is amended to read as follows:
                    ``(B) Exception for certain voyages.--The term 
                `covered voyage' shall not include--
                            ``(i) a voyage of a passenger vessel of 
                        less than 12 hours between 2 ports in the 
                        United States, and
                            ``(ii) a voyage of less than 12 hours on a 
                        ferry between a port in the United States and a 
                        port outside the United States.
                For purposes of the preceding sentence, the term 
                `ferry' means any vessel if normally no more than 50 
                percent of the passengers on any voyage of such vessel 
                return to the port where such voyage began on the 1st 
                return of such vessel to such port.''
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
apply to voyages beginning after December 31, 1989; except that--
            (1) no refund of any tax paid before the date of the 
        enactment of this Act shall be made by reason of such 
        amendment, and
            (2) any tax collected from the passenger before the date of 
        the enactment of this Act shall be remitted to the United 
        States.
                                 <all>