[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 175 (Monday, December 8, 2003)]
[House]
[Pages H12867-H12868]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         ARCHERY REVENUE REFORM AND OPPORTUNITY FOR WORKERS ACT

  Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the 
Committee on Ways and Means be discharged from further consideration of 
the bill (H.R. 3652) to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to 
modify the taxation of imported archery products, and ask for its 
immediate consideration in the House.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Wisconsin?
  There was no objection.
  The Clerk read the bill, as follows:

                               H.R. 3652

       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 ``Archery Revenue Reform and 
     Opportunity for Workers Act''.

     SEC. 2. MODIFIED TAXATION OF IMPORTED ARCHERY PRODUCTS.

       (a) Bows.--Paragraph (1) of section 4161(b) of the Internal 
     Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to bows) is amended to read as 
     follows:
       ``(1) Bows.--
       ``(A) In general.--There is hereby imposed on the sale by 
     the manufacturer, producer, or importer of any bow which has 
     a peak draw weight of 30 pounds or more, a tax equal to 11 
     percent of the price for which so sold.
       ``(B) Archery equipment.--There is hereby imposed on the 
     sale by the manufacturer, producer, or importer--
       ``(i) of any part or accessory suitable for inclusion in or 
     attachment to a bow described in subparagraph (A), and
       ``(ii) of any quiver or broadhead suitable for use with an 
     arrow described in paragraph (2),

     a tax equal to 11 percent of the price for which so sold.''.
       (b) Arrows.--Subsection (b) of section 4161 of the Internal 
     Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to bows and arrows, etc.) is 
     amended by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (4) and 
     inserting after paragraph (2) the following:
       ``(3) Arrows.--
       ``(A) In general.--There is hereby imposed on the sale by 
     the manufacturer, producer, or importer of any arrow, a tax 
     equal to 12 percent of the price for which so sold.
       ``(B) Exception.--In the case of any arrow of which the 
     shaft or any other component has been previously taxed under 
     paragraph (1) or (2)--
       ``(i) section 6416(b)(3) shall not apply, and
       ``(ii) the tax imposed by subparagraph (A) shall be an 
     amount equal to the excess (if any) of--

       ``(I) the amount of tax imposed by this paragraph 
     (determined without regard to this subparagraph), over

[[Page H12868]]

       ``(II) the amount of tax paid with respect to the tax 
     imposed under paragraph (1) or (2) on such shaft or 
     component.

       ``(C) Arrow.--For purposes of this paragraph, the term 
     `arrow' means any shaft described in paragraph (2) to which 
     additional components are attached.''.
       (c) Conforming Amendments.--Section 4161(b)(2) of the 
     Internal Revenue Code is amended--
       (1) by inserting ``(other than broadheads)'' after 
     ``point'', and
       (2) by striking ``Arrows.--'' in the heading and inserting 
     ``Arrow components.--''.
       (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section 
     shall apply to articles sold by the manufacturer, producer, 
     or importer after February 15, 2004.

  Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, along with my colleague, 
Representative Matheson, I am pleased to introduce the Archery Revenue 
Reform and Opportunity for Workers Act of 2003 (ARROW Act).
  Our bill will protect Americans jobs by fixing a mistake in the tax 
code that allows archery equipment to be imported into the United 
States without paying the excise tax that American manufacturers pay. 
Our bill will close this loophole now.
  The excise tax on domestically produced arrows is 12.4 percent. The 
revenue from this excise tax is dedicated to the Pittman-Robertson Aid 
for Wildlife Restoration Fund that finances the States' wildlife 
conservation and habitat restoration programs. In 1997, a change in the 
excise tax inadvertently created a loophole that allows arrows 
manufactured outside of the United States to be sold in the United 
States without paying the tax paid by American manufacturers.
  Sales of imported arrows and arrow shafts have increased from less 
than $1 million in 1997 to over $12 million in 2002. By avoiding the 
excise tax, foreign manufacturers have displaced more than one-third of 
our domestic production.
  The loss of U.S. jobs and the negative impact on domestic small 
businesses will continue to accelerate, as year-to-date imports through 
June 30 have increased 35 percent over the same time period in 2002. In 
addition to the loss of jobs, this loophole is draining funding from 
the States' conservation and game management programs.
  This legislation will close the loophole that allows imported arrows 
to avoid the excise tax paid by domestic manufacturers. While keeping 
the current 12.4 percent tax on arrow components, the proposal will 
impose a tax of 12 percent on the first sale of an arrow assembled from 
untaxed components. U.S. manufacturers and foreign manufacturers will 
be treated equally.
  Current law also taxes non-hunters, contrary to congressional intent. 
To relieve non-hunters from the requirement to pay for wildlife 
management, the legislation would eliminate the current-law tax on bows 
with draw weights of less than 30 pounds. Those bows are not suitable 
or, in many States, legal for hunting. To preserve the revenue for the 
Wildlife Restoration Fund, the bill would retain the current tax on 
bows that are suitable for hunting.
  Finally, the ARROW Act will clarify that broadheads are an accessory 
taxed at 11 percent rather than as an arrow component taxed at 12.4 
percent. This will correct the ambiguity in the 1997 act that led to 
the misclassification of broadheads.
  I urge my colleagues to pass the Archery Revenue Reform and 
Opportunity for Workers Act today. This bill will save American jobs 
and protect funding for the Wildlife Restoration Program (the Pittman-
Robertson fund) by simplifying administration and compliance with the 
excise tax and closing the unintended loophole that allows arrows 
assembled outside the United States to avoid the excise tax imposed on 
domestic manufacturers.
  The bill was ordered to be engrossed and read a third time, was read 
the third time, and passed, and a motion to reconsider was laid on the 
table.

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