[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7222 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7222
To provide for a credit against employment taxes for certain virus
transmission prevention expenses, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 15, 2020
Mr. Panetta introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Ways and Means
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for a credit against employment taxes for certain virus
transmission prevention expenses, and for other purposes.
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 ``Safe Reopening Tax Credit''.
SEC. 2. TAX CREDIT FOR SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS.
(a) In General.--In the case of an eligible employer, there shall
be allowed as a credit against applicable employment taxes for each
calendar quarter an amount equal to 30 percent of the qualified virus
transmission prevention expenses paid or incurred by such employer
during such calendar quarter.
(b) Limitations and Refundability.--
(1) Limitation.--The qualified fixed expenses which may be
taken into account under subsection (a) by any eligible
employer for any calendar quarter shall not exceed the least
of--
(A) $15,000, or
(B) the greater of--
(i) 25 percent of the wages paid with
respect to the employment of all employees of
the eligible employer for such calendar
quarter, or
(ii) 6.25 percent of gross receipts of the
eligible employer for calendar year 2019.
(2) Credit limited to certain employment taxes.--The credit
allowed by subsection (a) with respect to any calendar quarter
shall not exceed the applicable employment taxes for such
calendar quarter (reduced by any credits allowed under
subsections (e) and (f) of section 3111 of such Code, sections
7001 and 7003 of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act,
and section 2301 of the CARES Act, for such quarter) on the
wages paid with respect to the employment of all the employees
of the eligible employer for such calendar quarter.
(3) Refundability of excess credit.--
(A) In general.--If the amount of the credit under
subsection (a) exceeds the limitation of paragraph (2)
for any calendar quarter, such excess shall be treated
as an overpayment that shall be refunded under sections
6402(a) and 6413(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of
1986.
(B) Treatment of payments.--For purposes of section
1324 of title 31, United States Code, any amounts due
to an employer under this paragraph shall be treated in
the same manner as a refund due from a credit provision
referred to in subsection (b)(2) of such section.
(c) Definitions.--For purposes of this section--
(1) Applicable employment taxes.--The term ``applicable
employment taxes'' means the following:
(A) The taxes imposed under section 3111(a) of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
(B) So much of the taxes imposed under section
3221(a) of such Code as are attributable to the rate in
effect under section 3111(a) of such Code.
(2) Eligible employer.--
(A) In general.--The term ``eligible employer''
means any employer--
(i) which was carrying on a trade or
business at any time during calendar year 2020,
(ii) which had either--
(I) not more than 1,500 full time
equivalent employees (as determined for
the purposes of determining whether an
employer is an applicable large
employer for the purposes of section
4980H(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986) for calendar year 2019,
or
(II) not more than $41,500,000 in
gross receipts in the last taxable year
ending in 2019, and
(iii) is primarily an establishment
classified under one of the following:
(I) The North American Industry
Classification System Sector codes 44,
45, 71, or 72.
(II) The North American Industry
Classification System Subsector code
624.
(III) The North American Industry
Classification System codes 512131 or
519120.
(B) Tax-exempt organizations.--In the case of an
organization which is described in section 501(c) of
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from tax
under section 501(a) of such Code--
(i) clauses (i) and (iii)(I) of
subparagraph (A) shall apply to all operations
of such organization, and
(ii) any reference in this section to gross
receipts shall be treated as a reference to
gross receipts within the meaning of section
6033 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
(3) Qualified virus transmission prevention expenses.--The
term ``qualified virus transmission prevention expenses'' means
the payment or accrual of any expense which is intended to
reduce or prevent the transmission of communicable viruses
(including Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2
(SARS-CoV-2)), which is used in the operation of a trade or
business in the United States (including the possessions of the
United States), including--
(A) barriers erected to prevent virus spread
between customers and employees, including plexiglass
installed at cashiers and other counters, and
partitions to separate customers,
(B) changes to fixtures to facilitate social
distancing, including additional check-out stations,
(C) contactless point-of-sale systems,
(D) enhanced sanitation, including deep cleaning
and hand sanitizer,
(E) thermometers and other virus monitoring devices
or methods, including COVID-19 testing,
(F) ventilation or air filtration,
(G) signage related to public health awareness,
social distancing, or altered services like curbside
pickups,
(H) employee health education,
(I) training for new business procedures resulting
from COVID-19,
(J) personal protective equipment, and
(K) such additional expenses as the Secretary, in
consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human
Services, determines to be necessary.
(4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of the Treasury or the Secretary's delegate.
(d) Aggregation Rule.--All persons treated as a single employer
under subsection (a) or (b) of section 52 of the Internal Revenue Code
of 1986, or subsection (m) or (o) of section 414 of such Code, shall be
treated as one employer for purposes of this section.
(e) Denial of Double Benefit.--For purposes of chapter 1 of such
Code, the gross income of any eligible employer, for the taxable year
which includes the last day of any calendar quarter with respect to
which a credit is allowed under this section, shall be increased by the
amount of such credit.
(f) Election Not To Have Section Apply.--This section shall not
apply with respect to any eligible employer for any calendar quarter if
such employer elects (at such time and in such manner as the Secretary
may prescribe) not to have this section apply.
(g) Transfers to Certain Trust Funds.--There are hereby
appropriated to the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund
and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund established under
section 201 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 401) and the Social
Security Equivalent Benefit Account established under section 15A(a) of
the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 (45 U.S.C. 231n-1(a)) amounts equal
to the reduction in revenues to the Treasury by reason of this section
(without regard to this subsection). Amounts appropriated by the
preceding sentence shall be transferred from the general fund at such
times and in such manner as to replicate to the extent possible the
transfers which would have occurred to such Trust Fund or Account had
this section not been enacted.
(h) Treatment of Deposits.--The Secretary shall waive any penalty
under section 6656 of such Code for any failure to make a deposit of
applicable employment taxes if the Secretary determines that such
failure was due to the anticipation of the credit allowed under this
section.
(i) Regulations and Guidance.--The Secretary shall issue such
forms, instructions, regulations, and guidance as are necessary--
(1) to allow the advance payment of the credit under
subsection (a), subject to the limitations provided in this
section, based on such information as the Secretary shall
require,
(2) to provide for the reconciliation of such advance
payment with the amount of the credit at the time of filing the
return of tax for the applicable quarter or taxable year,
(3) with respect to the application of the credit under
subsection (a) to third-party payors (including professional
employer organizations, certified professional employer
organizations, or agents under section 3504 of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986), including regulations or guidance
allowing such payors to submit documentation necessary to
substantiate the eligible employer status of employers that use
such payors,
(4) for application of subsection (c)(2)(A)(ii) in the case
of any employer which was not carrying on a trade or business
for all or part of the same calendar quarter in the prior year,
and
(5) for recapturing the benefit of credits determined under
this section in cases where there is a subsequent adjustment to
the credit determined under subsection (a).
(j) Application of Section.--This section shall apply only to
qualified fixed expenses paid or accrued in calendar quarters beginning
on or after the date of the enactment of this Act and before January 1,
2021.
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