```

[House Report 113-360]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

113th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                     113-360

======================================================================

 
 PROTECTING VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTERS AND EMERGENCY RESPONDERS ACT OF 2014

                                _______
                                

 February 25, 2014.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on 
            the State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

Mr. Camp, from the Committee on Ways and Means, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 3979]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Ways and Means, to whom was referred the 
bill (H.R. 3979) to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to 
ensure that emergency services volunteers are not taken into 
account as employees under the shared responsibility 
requirements contained in the Patient Protection and Affordable 
Care Act, having considered the same, report favorably thereon 
with an amendment and recommend that the bill as amended do 
pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
 I. Summary and Background............................................2
        A. Purpose and Summary...................................     2
        B. Background and Need for Legislation...................     2
        C. Legislative History...................................     3
II. Explanation of the Bill...........................................4
        A. Emergency Services Volunteers.........................     4
III.Votes of the Committee............................................8

IV. Budget Effects of the Bill........................................8
        A. Committee Estimate of Budgetary Effects...............     8
        B. Statement Regarding New Budget Authority and Tax 
            Expenditures Budget Authority........................     9
        C. Cost Estimate Prepared by the Congressional Budget 
            Office...............................................     9
        D. Macroeconomic Impact Analysis.........................    10
 V. Other Matters To Be Discussed Under the Rules of the House.......10
        A. Committee Oversight Findings and Recommendations......    10
        B. Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives.    10
        C. Information Relating to Unfunded Mandates.............    10
        D. Applicability of House Rule XXI 5(b)..................    10
        E. Tax Complexity Analysis...............................    10
        F. Congressional Earmarks, Limited Tax Benefits, and 
            Limited Tariff Benefits..............................    11
        G. Duplication of Federal Programs.......................    11
        H. Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings...................    11
VI. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, As Reported............11

    The amendment is as follows:
    Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

  This Act may be cited as the ``Protecting Volunteer Firefighters and 
Emergency Responders Act of 2014''.

SEC. 2. EMERGENCY SERVICES VOLUNTEERS.

  (a) In General.--Section 4980H(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
1986 is amended by redesignating paragraphs (5), (6), and (7) as 
paragraphs (6), (7), and (8), respectively, and by inserting after 
paragraph (4) the following new paragraph:
          ``(5) Special rule for certain emergency services 
        volunteers.--Any qualified services rendered as a bona fide 
        volunteer to an eligible employer shall not be taken into 
        account under this section as service provided by an employee. 
        For purposes of the preceding sentence, the terms `qualified 
        services', `bona fide volunteer', and `eligible employer' shall 
        have the respective meanings given such terms under section 
        457(e).''.
  (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall apply 
to months beginning after December 31, 2013.

                       I. Summary and Background

                         A. PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

    H.R. 3979 would amend section 4980H of the Internal Revenue 
Code of 1986 (``the Code'') to ensure that qualified emergency 
services volunteers are not counted in determining the full-
time employees or full-time equivalents of a given employer for 
purposes of the employer mandate under the Patient Protection 
and Affordable Care Act (PPACA).

                 B. BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    Many communities rely exclusively upon volunteer fire 
departments for fire protection and emergency medical services. 
In these communities, volunteers may receive nominal incentives 
and may be assigned to multiple 12- and 24-hour shifts--easily 
allowing them to work in excess of 30 hours per week. Because 
the Internal Revenue Service (``IRS'') has a history of 
treating volunteer firefighters as ``employees'' for tax 
purposes, concerns have been expressed that the IRS could treat 
these volunteers as ``employees'' for purposes of the employer 
mandate.
    If incorrectly implemented, volunteer fire departments may 
be unintentionally forced to comply with requirements under the 
employer mandate (applying to full-time workers working 30 
hours or more per week) that could force them to close or 
curtail their emergency response activities.
    The International Association of Fire Chiefs has warned 
that over ``780,000 other volunteer firefighters throughout the 
nation, are classified as `employees' of their fire 
departments. This classification could force fire departments 
to offer health insurance to volunteers, a requirement which 
very few fire departments could meet, and even fewer volunteers 
want.''
    On January 10, 2014, the Department of the Treasury 
(``Treasury'') released a blog posting stating that ``final 
regulations, which we expect to issue shortly'' would ``not 
require volunteer hours of bona fide volunteer firefighters and 
volunteer emergency medical personnel at governmental or tax-
exempt organizations to be counted when determining full-time 
employees (or full-time equivalents).'' As of February 4, 2014 
(the date the Committee marked up and ordered reported H.R. 
3979), however, no final regulations had been issued, and there 
remained considerable uncertainty as to how the employer 
mandate would apply to emergency services volunteers.
    Subsequent to the Committee's action, on February 10, 2014, 
Treasury and the IRS issued final regulations under section 
4980H. The final regulations provide that hours of service do 
not include hours worked as a ``bona fide volunteer.''
    Unfortunately, however, arbitrary regulatory guidance--even 
the final rule issued in response to the Committee's action on 
H.R. 3979--does not provide the same degree of certainty as 
would the Protecting Volunteer Firefighters and Emergency 
Responders Act of 2014. The history of this Administration's 
own rulemaking process with respect to the employer mandate 
demonstrates that Treasury can and will amend its previous 
regulatory guidance with little or no notice. For example, on 
July 2, 2013, a Treasury blog posting unexpectedly announced a 
delay of the employer mandate for 2014--overriding previously 
issued guidance from December of 2012. Additionally, other 
aspects of the final rule issued on February 10, 2014, suddenly 
amended previous guidance by delaying this mandate for an 
additional year for selected classes of employers. An Act of 
Congress is the only way to offer lasting certainty to fire 
departments--and much-needed peace of mind to our brave 
emergency services volunteers--across the nation.

                         C. LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

Background

    H.R. 3979 was introduced on January 31, 2014, and was 
referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

Committee action

    The Committee on Ways and Means marked up H.R. 3979, the 
Protecting Volunteer Firefighters and Emergency Responders Act 
of 2014, on February 4, 2014, and ordered the bill, as amended, 
favorably reported (with a quorum being present).

Committee hearings

    On January 28, 2014, the Full Committee held a hearing on 
the ``Impact of the Employer Mandate's Definition of Full-time 
Employee on Jobs and Opportunities.''

                      II. Explanation of the Bill

                    A. EMERGENCY SERVICES VOLUNTEERS

                              PRESENT LAW

Employer shared responsibility for health coverage

            In general
    Under PPACA,\1\ as amended by the Health Care and Education 
Reconciliation Act of 2010\2\ (generally referred to 
collectively as the ``Affordable Care Act'' or ``ACA''), an 
applicable large employer may be subject to a tax, called an 
``assessable payment,'' for a month if one or more of its full-
time employees is certified to the employer as receiving for 
the month a premium assistance credit for health insurance 
purchased on an American Health Benefit Exchange or reduced 
cost-sharing for the employee's share of expenses covered by 
such health insurance.\3\ (This is sometimes referred to as the 
employer shared responsibility requirement.) As discussed 
below, the amount of the assessable payment depends on whether 
the employer offers its full-time employees and their 
dependents the opportunity to enroll in minimum essential 
coverage under a group health plan sponsored by the employer 
and, if it does, whether the coverage offered is affordable and 
provides minimum value.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\Pub. L. No 111-148, enacted March 23, 2010.
    \2\Pub. L. No. 111-152, enacted March 30, 2010.
    \3\Sec. 4980H, added to the Code by section 1513 of PPACA and 
amended by 10106 of PPACA and section 1003 of the Health Care and 
Education Reconciliation Act of 2010. (Unless otherwise stated, all 
section references herein are to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as 
amended.) An applicable large employer is also subject to annual 
reporting requirements under section 6056. Premium assistance credits 
for health insurance purchased on an American Health Benefit Exchange 
are provided under section 36B. Reduced cost-sharing for an 
individual's share of expenses covered by such health insurance is 
provided under section 1402 of PPACA. For further information on these 
provisions, see Part III.B-D of Joint Committee on Taxation, Present 
Law and Background Relating to the Tax-Related Provisions in the 
Affordable Care Act (JCX-6-13), March 4, 2013, available on the Joint 
Committee on Taxation website at www.jct.gov.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Under the ACA, these rules are effective for months 
beginning after December 31, 2013. However, the IRS has 
announced that no assessable payments will be assessed for 
2014.\4\ On February 10, 2014, Treasury and the IRS issued 
final regulations on the employer shared responsibility 
requirement and announced that no assessable payments for 2015 
will apply to applicable large employers that have fewer than 
100 full-time employees and full-time equivalent employees and 
meet certain other requirements.\5\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \4\Notice 2013-45, 2013-31 I.R.B. 116, Part III, Q&A-2.
    \5\Section XV.D.6 of the preamble to the final regulations, 79 Fed. 
Reg. 8544, 8574-8575, February 12, 2014.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
            Definitions of full-time employee and applicable large 
                    employer
    For purposes of applying these rules, full-time employee 
means, with respect to any month, an employee who is employed 
on average at least 30 hours of service per week. Hours of 
service are to be determined under regulations, rules, and 
guidance prescribed by the Secretary of the Treasury, in 
consultation with the Secretary of Labor, including rules for 
employees who are not compensated on an hourly basis.
    Applicable large employer generally means, with respect to 
a calendar year, an employer who employed an average of at 
least 50 full-time employees on business days during the 
preceding calendar year.\6\ Solely for purposes of determining 
whether an employer is an applicable large employer (that is, 
whether the employer has at least 50 full-time employees), 
besides the number of full-time employees, the employer must 
include the number of its full-time equivalent employees for a 
month, determined by dividing the aggregate number of hours of 
service of employees who are not full-time employees for the 
month by 120. In addition, in determining whether an employer 
is an applicable large employer, members of the same controlled 
group, group under common control, and affiliated service group 
are treated as a single employer.\7\ If the group is an 
applicable large employer under this test, each member of the 
group is an applicable large employer even if any member by 
itself would not be an applicable large employer.\8\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \6\Additional rules apply, for example, in the case of an employer 
that was not in existence for the entire preceding calendar year.
    \7\The rules for determining controlled group, group under common 
control, and affiliated service group under section 414(b), (c), (m) 
and (o) apply for this purpose.
    \8\In addition, in determining assessable payments (as discussed 
herein), only one 30-employee reduction in full-time employees applies 
to the group and is allocated among the members ratably based on the 
number of full-time employees employed by each member.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
            Assessable payments
    If an applicable large employer does not offer its full-
time employees and their dependents minimum essential coverage 
under an employer-sponsored plan and at least one full-time 
employee is so certified to the employer, the employer may be 
subject to an assessable payment of $2,000\9\ (divided by 12 
and applied on a monthly basis) multiplied by the number of its 
full-time employees minus 30, regardless of the number of full-
time employees so certified. For example, in 2016, Employer A 
fails to offer minimum essential coverage and has 100 full-time 
employees, 10 of whom receive premium assistance credits for 
the entire year. The employer's assessable payment is $2,000 
for each employee over the 30-employee threshold, for a total 
of $140,000 ($2,000 multiplied by 70, that is, 100-30).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \9\For calendar years after 2014, the $2,000 dollar amount, and the 
$3,000 dollar amount referenced herein, are increased by the percentage 
(if any) by which the average per capita premium for health insurance 
coverage in the United States for the preceding calendar year (as 
estimated by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (``HHS'') no 
later than October 1 of the preceding calendar year) exceeds the 
average per capita premium for 2013 (as determined by the Secretary of 
HHS), rounded down to the next lowest multiple of $10.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Generally an employee who is offered minimum essential 
coverage under an employer-sponsored plan is not eligible for a 
premium assistance credit or reduced cost-sharing unless the 
coverage is unaffordable or fails to provide minimum value.\10\ 
However, if an employer offers its full-time employees and 
their dependents minimum essential coverage under an employer-
sponsored plan and at least one full-time employee is certified 
as receiving a premium assistance credit or reduced cost-
sharing (because the coverage is unaffordable or fails to 
provide minimum value), the employer may be subject to an 
assessable payment of $3,000 (divided by 12 and applied on a 
monthly basis) multiplied by the number of such full-time 
employees. However, the assessable payment in this case is 
capped at the amount that would apply if the employer failed to 
offer its full-time employees and their dependents minimum 
essential coverage. For example, in 2016, Employer B offers 
minimum essential coverage and has 100 full-time employees, 20 
of whom receive premium assistance credits for the entire year. 
The employer's assessable payment before consideration of the 
cap is $3,000 for each full-time employee receiving a credit, 
for a total of $60,000. The cap on the assessable payment is 
the amount that would have applied if the employer failed to 
offer coverage, or $140,000 ($2,000 multiplied by 70, that is, 
100-30). In this example, the cap therefore does not affect the 
amount of the assessable payment, which remains at $60,000.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \10\Under section 36B(c)(2)(C), coverage under an employer-
sponsored plan is unaffordable if the employee's share of the premium 
for self-only coverage exceeds 9.5 percent of household income, and the 
coverage fails to provide minimum value if the plan's share of total 
allowed cost of provided benefits is less than 60 percent of such 
costs.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
            Proposed regulations
    The IRS issued proposed regulations on the employer shared 
responsibility requirement on December 28, 2012.\11\ The 
preamble to the proposed regulations invited the public to 
provide comments on issues relating to the application of the 
employer shared responsibility requirement. As of February 4, 
2014--the date on which the Ways and Means Committee marked up 
and ordered reported H.R. 3979, as amended--final regulations 
had not yet been issued. As noted above and discussed further 
below, Treasury issued final regulations on February 10, 2014.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \11\REG-138006-12, 78 Fed. Reg. 218, January 2, 2013. The IRS 
issued an advance notice of the proposed regulations on December 28, 
2012. As noted above, the IRS subsequently announced that no assessable 
payments will be assessed for 2014.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Emergency services volunteers

            In general
    In a January 10, 2014, blog posting, Treasury addressed the 
application of the employer shared responsibility requirement 
to individuals performing emergency services on a volunteer 
basis.\12\ Treasury noted that, in response to the request for 
public comments on the proposed regulations, numerous comments 
were received on the treatment of services performed by 
volunteer firefighters and emergency medical personnel. The 
Treasury blog posting indicated that the then-forthcoming final 
regulations relating to the employer shared responsibility 
requirement generally would not require volunteer hours of bona 
fide volunteer firefighters and volunteer emergency medical 
personnel at governmental or tax-exempt organizations to be 
counted when determining full-time employees (or full-time 
equivalents).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \12\``Treasury Ensures Fair Treatment for Volunteer Firefighters 
and Emergency Responders Under the Affordable Care Act,'' posted by 
Mark J. Mazur, Assistant Treasury Secretary for Tax Policy, at Treasury 
Notes (Treasury's official blog), January 10, 2014, available at http:/
/www.treasury.gov/connect/blog/Pages/Treasury-Ensures-Fair-Treatment-
for-Volunteer-Firefighters-and-Emergency-Responders-under-the-
Affordable-Care-Act-Under-ACA.aspx.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The Treasury blog posting referred to existing Code rules 
relating to volunteers performing emergency services for an 
``eligible'' employer, that is, a State or local government or 
an organization (other than a government entity) exempt from 
income tax.\13\ These rules provide special treatment for 
certain deferred compensation plans providing only length of 
service awards to bona fide volunteers (or their beneficiaries) 
on account of qualified services performed by the volunteers. 
For this purpose, an individual is a bona fide volunteer if the 
individual's only compensation for performing qualified 
services is in the form of (1) reimbursement for (or a 
reasonable allowance for) reasonable expenses incurred in the 
performance of such services, or (2) reasonable benefits 
(including length of service awards), and nominal fees for such 
services, customarily paid by eligible employers in connection 
with the performance of such services by volunteers. Qualified 
services for this purpose are fire fighting and prevention 
services, emergency medical services, and ambulance services.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \13\Sec. 457(e)(11)(A)(ii),(B) and (C).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
            Final regulations
    As noted above, final regulations were issued February 10, 
2014, after the date on which the Ways and Means Committee 
marked up and ordered reported H.R. 3979, as amended. Under the 
final regulations, hours spent performing services as a bona 
fide volunteer are not treated as ``hours of service'' 
performed by employees for purposes of the employer shared 
responsibility requirement.\14\ Thus, such hours are 
disregarded in determining an employer's full-time employees 
and full-time equivalent employees. For this purpose, the 
regulations define a bona fide volunteer as an employee of a 
government entity or tax-exempt organization\15\ whose only 
compensation from that entity or organization is in the form of 
(1) reimbursement for (or reasonable allowance for) reasonable 
expenses incurred in the performance of services by volunteers, 
or (2) reasonable benefits (including length of service 
awards), and nominal fees, customarily paid by similar entities 
in connection with the performance of services by 
volunteers.\16\ This definition is not limited to volunteers 
performing emergency services.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \14\Treas. Reg. sec. 54.4980H-1(a)(24)(ii)(A).
    \15\The regulations refer specifically to an organization described 
in section 501(c) that is exempt from taxation under section 501(a).
    \16\Treas. Reg. sec. 54.4980H-1(a)(7).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

                           REASONS FOR CHANGE

    When the Committee met to consider H.R. 3979 on February 4, 
2014, Treasury had merely indicated through a blog posting that 
it intended to address, at some undetermined future time, the 
treatment of emergency services volunteers for purposes of the 
employer shared responsibility requirement. The Committee noted 
that, until final regulations providing further detail were 
issued, uncertainty existed as to how the requirement would 
apply in this context. In ordering reported H.R. 3979, as 
amended, the Committee expressed its view that it was important 
to provide clarity to these volunteers and the organizations to 
which they provide services, services that are vital to 
American communities.
    The Committee has subsequently taken note that, in response 
to the Committee's action on this bill, Treasury and the IRS on 
February 10, 2014, issued final regulations addressing this 
general issue. In view of several recent instances where the 
Administration has significantly altered its own previous 
regulatory guidance concerning the employer mandate, however, 
the Committee remains concerned that emergency services 
volunteers face unwarranted uncertainty without a modification 
to the underlying statute itself. The Committee, therefore, 
continues to believe that the statutory change proposed in H.R. 
3979 is necessary to provide that important clarity.

                        EXPLANATION OF PROVISION

    Under the provision, for purposes of the employer shared 
responsibility requirement, any qualified services as a bona 
fide volunteer for an eligible employer are not taken into 
account as service provided by an employee. For this purpose, 
qualified services, bona fide volunteer, and eligible employer 
have the same meanings as for purposes of the rules relating to 
deferred compensation plans of eligible employers.

                             EFFECTIVE DATE

    The provision is effective for months beginning after 
December 31, 2013.

                      III. Votes of the Committee

    In compliance with clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, the following statement is made 
concerning the vote of the Committee on Ways and Means in its 
consideration of H.R. 3979, the ``Protecting Volunteer 
Firefighters and Emergency Responders Act of 2014.''
    The bill, H.R. 3979, was ordered favorably reported as 
amended by a roll call vote of 37 yeas to 0 nays (with a quorum 
being present). The vote was as follows:

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
          Representative             Yea      Nay     Present      Representative      Yea      Nay     Present
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mr. Camp.........................       3   .......  .........  Mr. Levin..........       3   .......  .........
Mr. Johnson......................       3   .......  .........  Mr. Rangel.........       3   .......  .........
Mr. Brady........................       3   .......  .........  Mr. McDermott......       3   .......  .........
Mr. Ryan.........................       3   .......  .........  Mr. Lewis..........       3   .......  .........
Mr. Nunes........................       3   .......  .........  Mr. Neal...........       3   .......  .........
Mr. Tiberi.......................       3   .......  .........  Mr. Becerra........  .......  .......  .........
Mr. Reichert.....................       3   .......  .........  Mr. Doggett........       3   .......  .........
Mr. Boustany.....................       3   .......  .........  Mr. Thompson.......       3   .......  .........
Mr. Roskam.......................       3   .......  .........  Mr. Larson.........       3   .......  .........
Mr. Gerlach......................       3   .......  .........  Mr. Blumenauer.....       3   .......  .........
Mr. Price........................       3   .......  .........  Mr. Kind...........       3   .......  .........
Mr. Buchanan.....................       3   .......  .........  Mr. Pascrell.......       3   .......  .........
Mr. Smith........................       3   .......  .........  Mr. Crowley........       3   .......  .........
Mr. Schock.......................       3   .......  .........  Ms. Schwartz.......  .......  .......  .........
Ms. Jenkins......................       3   .......  .........  Mr. Davis..........       3   .......  .........
Mr. Paulsen......................       3   .......  .........  Ms. Sanchez........       3   .......  .........
Mr. Marchant.....................       3   .......  .........
Ms. Black........................       3   .......  .........
Mr. Reed.........................       3   .......  .........
Mr. Young........................       3   .......  .........
Mr. Kelly........................       3   .......  .........
Mr. Griffin......................       3   .......  .........
Mr. Renacci......................       3   .......  .........
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

                     IV. Budget Effects of the Bill

               A. COMMITTEE ESTIMATE OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS

    In compliance with clause 3(d) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, the following statement is made 
concerning the effects on the budget of the bill, H.R. 3979, as 
reported.
    The bill, as reported, is estimated to have no effect on 
Federal budget receipts for fiscal years 2014-2024.

B. STATEMENT REGARDING NEW BUDGET AUTHORITY AND TAX EXPENDITURES BUDGET 
                               AUTHORITY

    In compliance with clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives, the Committee states that the 
bill involves no new or increased budget authority. The 
Committee states further that the bill involves no new or 
increased tax expenditures.

      C. COST ESTIMATE PREPARED BY THE CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE

    In compliance with clause 3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives, requiring a cost estimate 
prepared by the CBO, the following statement by CBO is 
provided.

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                 Washington, DC, February 12, 2014.
Hon. Dave Camp,
Chairman, Committee on Ways and Means,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 3979, the 
Protecting Volunteer Firefighters and Emergency Responders Act 
of 2014.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Logan 
Timmerhoff.
            Sincerely,
                                      Douglas W. Elmendorf,
                                                          Director.
    Enclosure.

H.R. 3979--Protecting Volunteer Firefighters and Emergency Responders 
        Act of 2014

    H.R. 3979 would amend the Internal Revenue Code to exclude 
volunteer hours of volunteer firefighters and emergency medical 
personnel from counting towards the calculation of the number 
of a firm's full-time employees for purposes of certain 
provisions of the Affordable Care Act. Those provisions require 
certain employers with 50 or more full-time equivalent 
employees to either offer health care coverage of a certain 
standard or be subject to penalties.
    CBO and the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) 
estimate that H.R. 3979 would have no significant budgetary 
effect because the U.S. Treasury Department has issued final 
regulations that, by CBO's and JCT's assessment, provide the 
same treatment for those groups as H.R. 3979. Enacting H.R. 
3979 would not affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, 
pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply.
    JCT has determined that the bill contains no 
intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the 
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Logan 
Timmerhoff. The estimate was approved by David Weiner, 
Assistant Director for Tax Analysis.

                    D. MACROECONOMIC IMPACT ANALYSIS

    In compliance with clause 3(h)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives, the following statement is 
made by the Joint Committee on Taxation with respect to the 
provisions of the bill amending the Internal Revenue Code of 
1986: the effects of the bill on economic activity are so small 
as to be incalculable within the context of a model of the 
aggregate economy.

     V. Other Matters To Be Discussed Under the Rules of the House

          A. COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

    With respect to clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives (relating to oversight findings), 
the Committee advises that it was as a result of the 
Committee's review of the provisions of H.R. 3979 that the 
Committee concluded that it is appropriate to report the bill, 
as amended, favorably to the House of Representatives with the 
recommendation that the bill do pass.

        B. STATEMENT OF GENERAL PERFORMANCE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

    With respect to clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, the Committee advises that the 
bill contains no measure that authorizes funding, so no 
statement of general performance goals and objectives for which 
any measure authorizes funding is required.

              C. INFORMATION RELATING TO UNFUNDED MANDATES

    This information is provided in accordance with section 423 
of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Pub. L. No. 104-
4).
    The Committee has determined that the bill does not contain 
Federal mandates on the private sector. The Committee has 
determined that the bill does not impose a Federal 
intergovernmental mandate on State, local, or tribal 
governments.

                D. APPLICABILITY OF HOUSE RULE XXI 5(B)

    Rule XXI 5(b) of the Rules of the House of Representatives 
provides, in part, that ``A bill or joint resolution, 
amendment, or conference report carrying a Federal income tax 
rate increase may not be considered as passed or agreed to 
unless so determined by a vote of not less than three-fifths of 
the Members voting, a quorum being present.'' The Committee has 
carefully reviewed the bill, and states that the bill does not 
involve any Federal income tax rate increases within the 
meaning of the rule.

                       E. TAX COMPLEXITY ANALYSIS

    Section 4022(b) of the Internal Revenue Service 
Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998 (the ``IRS Reform Act'') 
requires the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation (in 
consultation with the Internal Revenue Service and the Treasury 
Department) to provide a tax complexity analysis. The 
complexity analysis is required for all legislation reported by 
the Senate Committee on Finance, the House Committee on Ways 
and Means, or any committee of conference if the legislation 
includes a provision that directly or indirectly amends the 
Internal Revenue Code and has widespread applicability to 
individuals or small businesses.
    Pursuant to clause 3(h)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, the staff of the Joint Committee on 
Taxation has determined that a complexity analysis is not 
required under section 4022(b) of the IRS Reform Act because 
the bill contains no provisions that amend the Code and that 
have ``widespread applicability'' to individuals or small 
businesses, within the meaning of the rule.

  F. CONGRESSIONAL EARMARKS, LIMITED TAX BENEFITS, AND LIMITED TARIFF 
                                BENEFITS

    With respect to clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, the Committee has carefully reviewed 
the provisions of the bill, and states that the provisions of 
the bill do not contain any congressional earmarks, limited tax 
benefits, or limited tariff benefits within the meaning of the 
rule.

                   G. DUPLICATION OF FEDERAL PROGRAMS

    In compliance with Sec. 3(j)(2) of H. Res. 5 (113th 
Congress), the Committee states that no provision of the bill 
establishes or reauthorizes: (1) a program of the Federal 
Government known to be duplicative of another Federal program, 
(2) a program included in any report from the Government 
Accountability Office to Congress pursuant to section 21 of 
Public Law 111-139, or (3) a program related to a program 
identified in the most recent Catalog of Federal Domestic 
Assistance, published pursuant to the Federal Program 
Information Act (Public Law 95-220, as amended by Public Law 
98-169).

                 H. DISCLOSURE OF DIRECTED RULE MAKINGS

    In compliance with Sec. 3(k) of H. Res. 5 (113th Congress), 
the following statement is made concerning directed rule 
makings: The Committee estimates that the bill requires no 
directed rule makings within the meaning of such section.

       VI. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported

  In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by 
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law 
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new 
matter is printed in italic, existing law in which no change is 
proposed is shown in roman):

                     INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF 1986

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *
Subtitle D--Miscellaneous Excise Taxes

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

CHAPTER 43--QUALIFIED PENSION, ETC., PLANS

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

SEC. 4980H. SHARED RESPONSIBILITY FOR EMPLOYERS REGARDING HEALTH 
                    COVERAGE.

  (a) * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

  (c) Definitions and Special Rules.--For purposes of this 
section--
          (1) * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

          (5) Special rule for certain emergency services 
        volunteers.--Any qualified services rendered as a bona 
        fide volunteer to an eligible employer shall not be 
        taken into account under this section as service 
        provided by an employee. For purposes of the preceding 
        sentence, the terms ``qualified services'', ``bona fide 
        volunteer'', and ``eligible employer'' shall have the 
        respective meanings given such terms under section 
        457(e).
          [(5)] (6) Inflation adjustment.--
                  (A) * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

          [(6)] (7) Other definitions.--Any term used in this 
        section which is also used in the Patient Protection 
        and Affordable Care Act shall have the same meaning as 
        when used in such Act.
          [(7)] (8) Tax nondeductible.--For denial of deduction 
        for the tax imposed by this section, see section 
        275(a)(6).

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

                                  
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