[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2787 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







107th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2787

  To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to exempt certain United 
      States international ports from the harbor maintenance tax.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 24, 2002

  Mrs. Murray (for herself and Ms. Cantwell) introduced the following 
  bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to exempt certain United 
      States international ports from the harbor maintenance tax.

    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 ``U.S. Port Opportunity and 
Revitalizing Trade Act''.

SEC. 2. EXEMPTION OF CERTAIN UNITED STATES INTERNATIONAL PORTS FROM 
              HARBOR MAINTENANCE TAX.

    (a) In General.--Paragraph (2) of section 4462(a) of the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986 (defining port) is amended by adding at the end 
the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(D) Special rule for certain ports located near 
                foreign international container ports.--
                            ``(i) In general.--The term `port' does not 
                        include any port--
                                    ``(I) which is located within 200 
                                miles of a container port of a country 
                                contiguous to the United States, and
                                    ``(II) at which no Federal funds 
                                received in the Treasury under section 
                                4461 (relating to the harbor 
                                maintenance tax) are used for 
                                construction, maintenance, or operation 
                                in the port authority area after the 
                                date of the enactment of this 
                                subparagraph.
                            ``(ii) Container port.--For purposes of 
                        clause (i)(I), the term `container port' means 
                        a port at which during the period January 1, 
                        2001, through December 31, 2001, not less than 
                        400,000 cargo containers were loaded or 
                        unloaded on or from vessels.
                            ``(iii) Cargo container.--For purposes of 
                        clause (ii), no container shall be treated as a 
                        cargo container unless the inside volume of 
                        such container is not less than a 20-foot 
                        equivalent measure.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
apply to the loading or unloading of cargo after the date of enactment 
of this Act.
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