[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4297 Introduced in House (IH)]

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114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4297

    To impose certain requirements on the Secretary of the Treasury 
relating to transmittals of country-by-country reports for purposes of 
           the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting Action Plan.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           December 18, 2015

 Mr. Boustany introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
   Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee on 
  Foreign Affairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 
  Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
           within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To impose certain requirements on the Secretary of the Treasury 
relating to transmittals of country-by-country reports for purposes of 
           the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting Action Plan.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. REQUIRED MEASURES RELATING TO TRANSMITTALS OF COUNTRY-BY-
              COUNTRY REPORTS AND MASTER FILE INFORMATION.

    (a) Prohibition.--The Secretary is expressly prohibited from 
collecting from a United States person or transmitting to any foreign 
jurisdiction any country-by-country report information of any United 
States person with respect to taxable years beginning before January 1, 
2017.
    (b) Suspension of Transmittal of CbCRs.--The Secretary shall 
suspend the transmittal of country-by-country report information of any 
United States person to a foreign jurisdiction if the Secretary 
determines that the foreign jurisdiction is--
            (1) abusing master file documentation requirements; or
            (2) failing to safeguard the confidentiality of information 
        required in the master file.
    (c) Factors in Determining Abuse of Master File Documentation 
Requirements.--For purposes of this section, a foreign jurisdiction is 
abusing master file documentation requirements if, in connection with 
the administration of the transfer pricing documentation standards set 
forth in Action 13 of the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting Action plan, 
the foreign jurisdiction is seeking--
            (1) any trade, business, industrial, commercial or 
        professional secret or trade process;
            (2) group consolidated financial statements that are not 
        filed with the United States Securities and Exchange 
        Commission;
            (3) confidential communications between a client and an 
        attorney, solicitor or other admitted legal representative 
        where such communications are--
                    (A) produced for the purposes of seeking or 
                providing legal advice, or
                    (B) produced for the purposes of use in existing or 
                contemplated legal proceedings;
            (4) information if the disclosure would be contrary to 
        United States public policy (ordre public); or
            (5) information the Secretary otherwise determines to be 
        inappropriate for purposes of this section.
    (d) Reports.--Not later than January 31 of each calendar year, the 
Secretary shall furnish to the Committee on Ways and Means of the House 
of Representatives, the Committee on Finance of the Senate, and the 
Joint Committee on Taxation a report on allegations or reports received 
concerning abuse of master file requirements, and any actions taken 
with respect to such allegations, including--
            (1) the instances in the preceding calendar year the 
        Secretary determined under subsection (b) the abuse of master 
        file documentation requirements and failures to safeguard the 
        confidentiality of information required in the master file, and
            (2) the nature of each such abuse or failure.
    (e) Definitions.--For purposes of this section--
            (1) Base erosion and profit shifting plan.--The term ``Base 
        Erosion and Profit Shifting Action Plan'', known as ``BEPS'', 
        means the plan released by the Organization for Economic 
        Cooperation and Development.
            (2) Country-by-country report.--The term ``country-by-
        country report'', known as ``CbCR'', means a report 
        contemplated under Action Item 13 of the Base Erosion and 
        Profit Shifting Action Plan.
            (3) Master file.--The term ``master file'' means the 
        documentation contemplated under Action Item 13 of the Base 
        Erosion and Profit Shifting Action Plan and necessary to 
        provide a high-level overview in order to place a United States 
        person's transfer pricing practices in their global economic, 
        legal, financial, and tax context, in order to provide backdrop 
        to country-by-country report data reported.
            (4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Treasury, or the Secretary's delegate.
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