[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1087 Introduced in House (IH)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1087

To ensure that methods of collecting taxes and fees by private citizens 
 on behalf of State and local jurisdictions are fair and effective and 
     do not discriminate against interstate commerce for wireless 
                      telecommunications services.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 25, 2015

Mr. Sensenbrenner (for himself and Mr. Zinke) introduced the following 
       bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To ensure that methods of collecting taxes and fees by private citizens 
 on behalf of State and local jurisdictions are fair and effective and 
     do not discriminate against interstate commerce for wireless 
                      telecommunications services.

    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 ``Wireless Telecommunications Tax and 
Fee Collection Fairness Act of 2015''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) States may designate in-State or out-of-State persons 
        or other entities as collection agents for the State with a 
        duty to collect certain taxes and fees for wireless 
        telecommunications from residents of the State.
            (2) States have the sovereign right to tax their citizens, 
        subject to the Constitution and the law. States do not have the 
        right to tax interstate commerce or to impose taxes or other 
        duties on citizens of other States without limitation.
            (3) Collection agents for a State may feasibly collect fees 
        and taxes from customers in connection with financial 
        transactions to which the agent and customer are parties.
            (4) Congress can help ensure against unreasonable burdens 
        on interstate commerce by making a financial transaction a 
        condition of imposing a duty on a person to serve as a 
        collection agent for the State and making such person strictly 
        liable for any failure to collect.

SEC. 3. TRANSACTIONAL NEXUS REQUIREMENT.

    No State or local jurisdiction may require any person to collect 
from, or remit on behalf of, any other person any state or local fee, 
tax or surcharge imposed on a purchaser or user with respect to the 
purchase or use of any wireless telecommunications service within a 
State, unless there is a financial transaction between the person from 
whom the State seeks to require such collection or remittance and the 
purchaser or user of such service. ``Wireless telecommunications 
service'' means commercial mobile radio service, as defined in section 
20.3 of title 47 of the Code of Federal Regulations (January 16, 2015). 
``Financial transaction'' means that there is a transaction involving 
cash, credit or any other exchange of monetary value or consideration 
given by the purchaser or user upon whom the fee, tax or surcharge is 
imposed to the person required to collect or remit the fee, tax or 
surcharge. The term ``State or local jurisdiction'' means any of the 
several States, the District of Columbia, any territory or possession 
of the United States, a political subdivision of any State, territory, 
or possession, or any governmental entity or person acting on behalf of 
such State, territory, possession, or subdivision that has the 
authority to assess, impose, levy, or collect taxes or fees. This 
section shall have no effect on a state or local jurisdiction's right 
to require the collection of any tax, fee, or surcharge in instances 
where a financial transaction has occurred.

SEC. 4. ENFORCEMENT.

    Notwithstanding any provision of section 1341 of title 28, United 
States Code, or of the constitution or laws of any State, the district 
courts of the United States shall have jurisdiction, without regard to 
amount in controversy or citizenship of the parties, to grant such 
mandatory or prohibitive injunctive relief, interim equitable relief, 
and declaratory judgments as may be necessary to prevent, restrain, or 
terminate any acts in violation of this Act.
                                 <all>