I 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4975 

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to impose an excise tax 

on the international transportation of individuals by water, to establish 

the Caribbean Ports and Infrastructure Improvement Trust Fund and 

the Water and Marine Wildlife Protection Trust Fund, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 22, 2004 

Mr. MEEKS of New York introduced the following bill; which was referred to 

the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee 

on Transportation and Infrastructure, 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 amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to impose 

an excise tax on the international transportation of individuals by water, to establish the Caribbean Ports and 

Infrastructure Improvement Trust Fund and the Water 

and Marine Wildlife Protection Trust Fund, and for 

other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Pay Back America Act 

3 of 2004’’. 

4 SEC. 2. IMPOSITION OF EXCISE TAX ON INTERNATIONAL 

5 TRANSPORTATION BY WATER. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 36 of the Internal Rev7 enue Code of 1986 (relating to certain other excise taxes) 

8 is amended by inserting after subchapter B the following 

9 new subchapter: 

10 ‘‘Subchapter C—International Transportation 

11 by Water 

‘‘Sec. 4475. Imposition of tax. 

‘‘Sec. 4476. Definitions. 

12 ‘‘SEC. 4475. IMPOSITION OF TAX. 

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There is hereby imposed a tax 

14 of $3 per passenger on a covered international voyage. 

15 ‘‘(b) BY WHOM PAID.—The tax imposed by this sec16 tion shall be paid by the person providing the covered 

17 international voyage. 

18 ‘‘(c) TIME OF IMPOSITION.—The tax imposed by this 

19 section shall be imposed only once for each passenger on 

20 a covered international voyage, either at the time of first 

21 embarkation or disembarkation in the United States. 

22 ‘‘SEC. 4476. DEFINITIONS. 

23 ‘‘For purposes of this subchapter— 
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1 ‘‘(1) COVERED INTERNATIONAL VOYAGE.—The 

2 term ‘covered international voyage’ means a voyage 

3 of a commercial passenger vessel if— 

4 ‘‘(A) such voyage extends over 1 or more 

5 nights, 

6 ‘‘(B) passengers embark or disembark the 

7 vessel in the United States, and 

8 ‘‘(C) passengers embark or disembark the 

9 vessel outside the United States. 

10 Such term shall not include any voyage of any vessel 

11 owned or operated by the United States, a State, or 

12 any agency or subdivision thereof. 

13 ‘‘(2) PASSENGER VESSEL.—The term ‘pas14 senger vessel’ means any vessel having berth or 

15 stateroom accommodations for more than 16 pas16 sengers.’’. 

17 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 6806 of 

18 such Code is amended by striking ‘‘subchapter B of chap19 ter 36’’ and inserting ‘‘subchapter B or C of chapter 36’’. 

20 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

21 this section shall apply to passengers embarking or dis22 embarking in the United States after the date of the en23 actment of this Act. 
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1 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF TRUST FUNDS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 98 of the Internal Rev3 enue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the 

4 following new sections: 

5 ‘‘SEC. 9511. CARIBBEAN PORTS AND INFRASTRUCTURE 

6 PROTECTION TRUST FUND. 

7 ‘‘(a) CREATION OF TRUST FUND.—There is estab8 lished in the Treasury of the United States a trust fund 

9 to be known as the ‘Caribbean Ports and Infrastructure 

10 Protection Trust Fund’, consisting of such amounts as 

11 may be appropriated or credited to such fund as provided 

12 in this section or section 9602(b). 

13 ‘‘(b) TRANSFERS TO TRUST FUND.—There are here14 by appropriated to the Caribbean Ports and Infrastructure 

15 Protection Trust Fund amounts equivalent to 32 percent 

16 of the taxes received in the Treasury under subchapter 

17 C of chapter 36 (relating to international transportation 

18 by water). 

19 ‘‘(c) EXPENDITURES FROM TRUST FUND.—The Sec20 retary shall make payments, not less frequently than an21 nually, from the Caribbean Ports and Infrastructure Pro22 tection Trust Fund to— 

23 ‘‘(1) the Bahamas, Cayman Islands, Barbados, 

24 Jamaica, Saint Lucia, and Grenada, each in an 

25 amount equivalent to the sum of— 
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1 ‘‘(A) 3 percent of the taxes received in the 

2 Treasury under subchapter C of chapter 36, 

3 and 

4 ‘‘(B) any amount credited to such fund 

5 under section 9602(b) which is attributable to 

6 the amount described in subparagraph (A), and 

7 ‘‘(2) Antigua and Barbuda, Belize, British Vir8 gin Islands, Dominica, Guyana, Haiti, Montserrat, 

9 Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grena10 dines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Anguilla, 

11 Bermuda, and Turks and Caicos Islands, each in an 

12 amount equivalent to the sum of— 

13 ‘‘(A) 1 percent of the taxes received in the 

14 Treasury under subchapter C of chapter 36, 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(B) any amount credited to such fund 

17 under section 9602(b) which is attributable to 

18 the amount described in subparagraph (A). 

19 ‘‘SEC. 9512. WATER AND MARINE WILDLIFE PROTECTION 

20 TRUST FUND. 

21 ‘‘(a) CREATION OF TRUST FUND.—There is estab22 lished in the Treasury of the United States a trust fund 

23 to be known as the ‘Water and Marine Wildlife Protection 

24 Trust Fund’, consisting of such amounts as may be appro-
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1 priated or credited to such fund as provided in this section 

2 or section 9602(b). 

3 ‘‘(b) TRANSFERS TO TRUST FUND.—There are here4 by appropriated to the Water and Marine Wildlife Protec5 tion Trust Fund amounts equivalent to 33 percent of the 

6 taxes received in the Treasury under subchapter C of 

7 chapter 36 (relating to international transportation by 

8 water). 

9 ‘‘(c) EXPENDITURES FROM TRUST FUND.—Amounts 

10 in the Water and Marine Wildlife Protection Trust Fund 

11 shall be available, as provided in appropriation Acts, for 

12 the purposes of making expenditures to carry out environ13 mental programs which provide for the clean up of waste 

14 in the oceans or the enforcement of restrictions on the 

15 dumping of waste in the oceans.’’. 

16 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

17 for chapter 98 of such Code is amended by adding at the 

18 end the following new items: 

‘‘Sec. 9511. Caribbean Ports and Infrastructure Protection Trust Fund. 

‘‘Sec. 9512. Water and Marine Wildlife Protection Trust Fund.’’. 

19 SEC. 4. REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO PREVENTION OF 

20 POLLUTION FROM VESSELS. 

21 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following: 

22 (1) Pollution prevention devices required on 

23 vessels are designed to reduce pollution. If they mal-
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1 function or are not functioning then they cannot 

2 prevent pollution. 

3 (2) Ensuring that these anti-pollution devices 

4 are functioning will ensure a reduction in pollution 

5 and will also give authorities advanced warning of 

6 pollution that has occurred. 

7 (3) Requiring biannual inspections of pollution 

8 prevention equipment on vessels will ensure that 

9 such equipment is fully operational and can ensure 

10 that it will perform its designed task to its full po11 tential. 

12 (4) Department of Justice officials have found 

13 in a number of cases fabricated entries in vessel oil 

14 record books that give a false sense of compliance 

15 with MARPOL discharge limitations. 

16 (5) Recording shore-side disposal of garbage 

17 and sludge from vessels will help to identify violators 

18 and help to deter others from unlawful discharges at 

19 sea. 

20 (6) Making violations of this Act a felony will 

21 have a deterrent effect. Imposing stiff fines will also 

22 accomplish that goal. 

23 (b) TOLL-FREE TELEPHONE NUMBER FOR REPORT24 ING ILLEGAL DUMPING.—The Secretary of the depart25 ment in which the Coast Guard is operating shall prescribe 
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1 regulations by not later than 6 months after the date of 

2 the enactment of this Act that require— 

3 (1) that each cruise vessel that enters a port or 

4 place in the United States while operating in the for5 eign or domestic commerce of the United States 

6 must have posted, in elevators and other common 

7 areas of the vessel, a notice stating— 

8 (A) that any passenger who witnesses ille9 gal dumping from the vessel into waters of the 

10 United States may report that dumping to the 

11 Coast Guard by calling a toll-free telephone 

12 number of the National Response Center or an13 other appropriate office of the Coast Guard; 

14 and 

15 (B) such telephone numbers; and 

16 (2) that the notice prescribed under paragraph 

17 (1) must be included on each ticket for carriage of 

18 a passenger on such a vessel in such commerce. 

19 (c) PROHIBITIONS.—It shall be unlawful— 

20 (1) for any vessel to enter a port or place in the 

21 United States if— 

22 (A) the vessel does not have on board all 

23 pollution prevention equipment otherwise re24 quired by law that functions in proper func25 tioning condition; or 
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1 (B) does not comply with requirements 

2 that apply to the vessel under regulations pre3 scribed under subsection (b); 

4 (2) to make any false entry in— 

5 (A) any oil record book for a vessel; or 

6 (B) any record of a vessel of shore-side 

7 disposal of garbage or sludge from the vessel; 

8 (3) to operate any cruise vessel in the foreign 

9 or domestic commerce of the United States that does 

10 not comply with any requirement that applies to the 

11 vessel under regulations prescribed subsection (b); or 

12 (4) to sell a ticket referred to in paragraph (2) 

13 of subsection (b) that does not include any notice re14 quired under regulations prescribed under subsection 

15 (b). 

16 (d) INSPECTIONS.—The Secretary of the department 

17 in which the Coast Guard is operating shall biannually in18 spect each vessel that is documented under the laws of 

19 the United States to determine whether— 

20 (1) the vessel has on board all pollution preven21 tion equipment required under subsection (c); 

22 (2) such equipment functions properly; and 

23 (3) in the case of a cruise vessel, the vessel 

24 complies with requirements that apply to the vessel 

25 under regulations prescribed under subsection (b). 
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1 (e) PENALTY.—Any person that violates this section, 

2 and the owner or operator of a vessel that violates this 

3 section, shall be fined under title 18, United States Code, 

4 or imprisoned for one year and a day (or such longer pe5 riod as may apply under another provision of law), or 

6 both. 

7 (f) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAW.—This section is 

8 not intended to affect the application of any other provi9 sion of law. 

10 (g) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

11 (1) CRUISE VESSEL.— 

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘cruise ves13 sel’’ means a passenger vessel (as defined in 

14 section 2101(22) of title 46, United States 

15 Code), that— 

16 (i) is authorized to carry at least 250 

17 passengers; and 

18 (ii) has onboard sleeping facilities for 

19 each passenger. 

20 (B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘cruise ves21 sel’’ does not include— 

22 (i) a vessel of the United States oper23 ated by the Federal Government; or 

24 (ii) a vessel owned and operated by 

25 the government of a State. 
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1 (2) PASSENGER.— 

2 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘passenger’’ 

3 means any person on board a cruise vessel for 

4 the purpose of travel. 

5 (B) INCLUSIONS.— The term ‘‘passenger’’ 

6 includes— 

7 (i) a paying passenger; and 

8 (ii) a staffperson, such as a crew 

9 member, captain, or officer. 

Æ