[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5056 Introduced in House (IH)]
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117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 5056
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide tax credits for
carriage of independent programmers by qualified distributors and
multichannel video programming distributors.
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IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
August 20, 2021
Ms. Clarke of New York introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on Ways and Means
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A BILL
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide tax credits for
carriage of independent programmers by qualified distributors and
multichannel video programming distributors.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. CARRIAGE OF INDEPENDENT PROGRAMMERS TAX CREDIT.
(a) In General.--Subpart D of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1
of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end
the following new section:
``SEC. 45U. CARRIAGE OF INDEPENDENT PROGRAMMERS CREDIT.
``(a) Allowance of Credit.--For purposes of section 38, in the case
of any eligible distributor, the carriage of independent programmers
credit determined under this section for the taxable year is, with
respect to each agreement for qualifying carriage entered into by such
eligible distributor, the lesser of--
``(1) the net license fees paid or incurred by such
eligible distributor during such taxable year under such
agreement for qualifying carriage, or
``(2) the product of $0.10 multiplied by the number of
subscribers per month to which carriage is provided under such
agreement.
``(b) Maximum Credit.--The credit determined under this section
with respect to any eligible distributor for any taxable year shall not
exceed the product of--
``(1) $0.10, multiplied by
``(2) 3 times the average number of subscribers of the
eligible distributor on days during such taxable year.
``(c) Definitions and Special Rules.--For purposes of this
section--
``(1) Eligible distributor.--The term `eligible
distributor' means--
``(A) any person engaged in the trade or business
of being a qualified distributor or multichannel video
programming distributor, as such term is defined in
section 76.1000 of title 47 of the Code of Federal
Regulations, and
``(B) any person engaged in the trade or business
of being a virtual multichannel video programming
distributor.
``(2) Agreement for qualifying carriage.--The term
`agreement for qualifying carriage' means a written agreement
between an eligible distributor and a qualified independent
programmer that provides for new or expanded carriage of a
qualified independent programmer to at least 40 percent of a
subscriber base and which requires the eligible distributor to
pay a license fee to the qualified independent programmer.
``(3) Qualified independent programmer.--The term
`qualified independent programmer'--
``(A) means a United States-based person engaged in
the production, creation, or wholesale distribution of
three or fewer television channels in which no
multichannel video programming distributor, cable
programmer, or broadcast network has attributable
interest, as such term is defined by section 1000(b) of
title 47 of the Code of Federal Regulations, and
``(B) includes rural, women, socially
disadvantaged, and minority-owned programmers.
``(4) Cable programmer.--The term `cable programmer' means
WarnerMedia LLC, The Walt Disney Company, News Corporation,
CBSViacom, Inc., Discovery, Inc., Comcast and their managed or
controlled subsidiaries, successors, and assigns.
``(5) License fees.--Except as otherwise provided by the
Secretary, in the case of an agreement for qualifying carriage
which is net effective rate positive for the qualified
independent programmer, the appropriate amount shall be treated
as a license fee paid by the eligible distributor to the
qualified independent programmer.
``(6) Socially disadvantaged.--The term `socially
disadvantaged' with respect to an individual means that the
individual has been subjected to racial or ethnic prejudice or
cultural bias because of the identity of the individual as a
member of a group without regard to the individual qualities of
the individual.
``(d) Denial of Double Benefit.--No deduction shall be allowed
under this chapter for any amount to the extent that such amount is
allowed as a credit under this section.''.
(b) Credit Made Part of General Business Credit.--Subsection (b) of
section 38 of such Code is amended by striking ``plus'' at the end of
paragraph (32), by striking the period at the end of paragraph (33) and
inserting ``, plus'', and by adding at the end the following new
paragraph:
``(34) the carriage of independent programmers credit
determined under section 45U.''.
(c) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for subpart D of
part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 is amended by adding at the end
the following new item:
``Sec. 45U. Carriage of Independent Programmers Credit.''.
(d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall
apply to expenses made or incurred after December 31, 2020, in taxable
years ending after such date.
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