I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 7431 
To provide a payroll tax credit for personal protective equipment for use 
by employees and customers. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 30, 2020 
Mr. ROUDA (for himself and Mr. MAST) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means 
A BILL 
To provide a payroll tax credit for personal protective 
equipment for use by employees and customers. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Helping Small Busi-
nesses Reopen Safely Act of 2020’’. 
SEC. 2. PAYROLL TAX CREDIT FOR PERSONAL PROTECTIVE 
EQUIPMENT. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—In the case of an eligible em-
ployer, there shall be allowed as a credit against applicable 
employment taxes for each calendar quarter an amount 
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equal to 90 percent of the amount paid or incurred by 
such employer during such calendar quarter for eligible 
personal protective equipment provided free of charge by 
such employer for the use or for the benefit of employees 
and customers of such employer. 
(b) LIMITATIONS AND REFUNDABILITY.— 
(1) DOLLAR LIMITATION.—The amount of the 
credit allowed under subsection (a) with respect to 
any eligible employer for any calendar quarter shall 
not exceed the lesser of— 
(A) $6,250, or 
(B) the greater of— 
(i) 2 percent of the employer’s gross 
receipts for such calendar quarter, or 
(ii) 0.5 percent of the employer’s 
gross receipts for the employer’s last tax-
able year ending in 2019. 
(2) 
CREDIT
LIMITED
TO
EMPLOYMENT 
TAXES.—The credit allowed by subsection (a) with 
respect to any calendar quarter shall not exceed the 
applicable employment taxes (reduced by any credits 
allowed under subsections (e) and (f) of section 
3111 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, sections 
7001 and 7003 of the Families First Coronavirus 
Response Act, and section 2301 of the CARES Act) 
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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 limita-
tion 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 pur-
poses of section 1324 of title 31, United States 
Code, any amounts due to the 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 fol-
lowing: 
(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 attrib-
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utable to the rate in effect under section 
3111(a) of such Code. 
(2) ELIGIBLE EMPLOYER.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘eligible em-
ployer’’ means, with respect to any calendar 
quarter, any employer— 
(i) which was carrying on a trade or 
business during such calendar quarter, and 
(ii) the average number of full-time 
employees (within the meaning of section 
4980H of the Internal Revenue Code of 
1986) employed by such employer during 
such calendar quarter was less than 500. 
(B) CERTAIN
TAX-EXEMPT
ORGANIZA-
TIONS
AND
GOVERNMENTAL
EMPLOYERS.—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, or any governmental enti-
ty (other than a governmental entity described 
in subparagraph (D)), subparagraph (A)(i) 
shall apply to all operations of such organiza-
tion or government. 
(C) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN TAX-EXEMPT 
ORGANIZATIONS.—The term ‘‘eligible employer’’ 
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shall not include any organization described in 
section 501(c)(4) of such Code unless such or-
ganization does not participate in, or intervene 
in (including the publishing or distributing of 
statements), any political campaign on behalf of 
(or in opposition to) any candidate for public 
office. 
(D) EXCLUSION OF FEDERAL AND FOR-
EIGN GOVERNMENTS.—The term ‘‘eligible em-
ployer’’ shall not include the Government of the 
United States, the government of any foreign 
country, or any agency or instrumentality of the 
foregoing. 
(3) ELIGIBLE PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIP-
MENT.—The term ‘‘eligible personal protective 
equipment’’ means masks or face coverings, goggles, 
face shields, respiratory protection, gloves, gowns, 
shields or barriers, hand sanitizers, surface cleaners 
or disinfectants, items that are intended to reduce 
the spread of infectious disease, and any other sup-
plies or equipment that the Secretary determines ap-
propriate for purposes of this section after consulta-
tion with Secretary of Health and Human Services 
and the Secretary of Labor. 
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(4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of the Treasury or the Secretary’s del-
egate. 
(5) OTHER TERMS.—Any term used in this sec-
tion which is also used in chapter 21 or 22 of the 
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 shall have the same 
meaning as when used in such chapter. 
(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 em-
ployer for any calendar quarter if such employer elects (at 
such time and in such manner as the Secretary may pre-
scribe) not to have this section apply. 
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(g) THIRD-PARTY
PAYORS.—Any credit allowed 
under this section shall be treated as a credit described 
in section 3511(d)(2) of such Code. 
(h) TRANSFERS TO FEDERAL OLD-AGE AND SUR-
VIVORS INSURANCE TRUST FUND.—There are hereby ap-
propriated to the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insur-
ance 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. 
14 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 pre-
ceding 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. 
(i) TREATMENT OF DEPOSITS.—The Secretary shall 
waive any penalty under section 6656 of the Internal Rev-
enue Code of 1986 for any failure to make a deposit of 
any applicable employment taxes if the Secretary deter-
mines that such failure was due to the reasonable anticipa-
tion of the credit allowed under this section. 
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(j) REGULATIONS AND GUIDANCE.—The Secretary 
shall issue such forms, instructions, regulations, and guid-
ance as are necessary— 
(1) to allow the advance payment of the credit 
under subsection (a), subject to the limitations pro-
vided in this section, based on such information as 
the Secretary shall require, 
(2) to provide for the reconciliation of such ad-
vance payment with the amount advanced at the 
time of filing the return of tax for the applicable cal-
endar quarter or taxable year, and 
(3) with respect to the application of the credit 
under subsection (a) to third-party payors (including 
professional employer organizations, certified profes-
sional employer organizations, or agents under sec-
tion 3504 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986), 
including regulations or guidance allowing such 
payors to submit documentation necessary to sub-
stantiate the eligible employer status of employers 
that use such payors. 
(k) APPLICATION.—This section shall only apply to 
calendar quarters beginning after December 31, 2019, and 
before January 1, 2022. 
Æ 
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