I
103D CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 3361
To provide revenues for the revitalization of the United States merchant
marine by increasing the excise tax on the transportation of passengers
by water for vessels having a capacity of at least 150 passengers, and
for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
OCTOBER 26, 1993
Mr. MACHTLEY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Ways and Means
A BILL
To provide revenues for the revitalization of the United
States merchant marine by increasing the excise tax
on the transportation of passengers by water for vessels
having a capacity of at least 150 passengers, and for
other purposes.
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 ‘‘Maritime Revitaliza-
tion Act of 1993’’.
SEC. 2. MODIFICATIONS IN EXCISE TAX ON TRANSPOR-
TATION OF PASSENGERS BY WATER.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 4471 of the Internal Rev-
enue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end there-
of the following new paragraph:
‘‘(4) TAX ON VESSELS HAVING A CAPACITY OF
AT LEAST 150 PASSENGERS.—In the case of a vessel
having berth or stateroom accommodations for at
least 150 passengers, the amount of the tax imposed
by paragraph (1) shall be equal to 5 percent of the
amount paid by each passenger for a covered voy-
age.’’
(b) MODIFICATION TO COVERED VOYAGES.—Clause
(i) of section 4472(1)(A) of such Code is amended by in-
serting before the comma ‘‘and which has a port of call
not located in the United States or a possession of the
United States’’.
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall take effect on the date of the enactment
of this Act.
SEC. 3. EXCISE TAX ON CONTAINERS USED TO IMPORT OR
EXPORT COMMERCIAL CARGO.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 36 of the Internal Reve-
nue Code of 1986 (relating to certain other excise taxes)
is amended by inserting after subchapter B the following
new subchapter:
‘‘Subchapter C—Containers Used
To Import or Export Cargo
‘‘Sec. 4476. Imposition of tax.
‘‘SEC. 4476. IMPOSITION OF TAX.
‘‘(a) GENERAL RULE.—There is hereby imposed a
tax on any taxable container use.
‘‘(b) AMOUNT OF TAX.—The amount of the tax im-
posed by subsection (a) on any taxable container use is
$15 per 20-foot equivalent unit of the container.
‘‘(c) LIABILITY AND TIME OF IMPOSITION OF TAX.—
‘‘(1) LIABILITY.—The tax imposed by sub-
section (a) shall be paid by the shipper.
‘‘(2) TIME OF IMPOSITION.—Except as other-
wise provided by regulations, the tax imposed by
subsection (a) shall be imposed—
‘‘(A) at the time of exportation in the case
of a use described in subsection (d)(1), and
‘‘(B) at the time of entry in the case of a
use in subsection (d)(2).
‘‘(d) TAXABLE CONTAINER USE.—For purposes of
this section, the term ‘taxable container use’ means—
‘‘(1) the loading of a container containing com-
mercial cargo on a commercial vessel at a port if—
‘‘(A) such cargo is being exported from the
United States, and
‘‘(B) such vessel is to provide the transport
from the United States, and
‘‘(2) the unloading of a container containing
commercial cargo from a commercial vessel at a port
if such cargo is being entered into the United States.
‘‘(e) OTHER DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this
section—
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—The terms ‘commercial
cargo’, ‘commercial vessel’, and ‘port’ have the re-
spective meanings given such terms under section
4462.
‘‘(2) UNITED
STATES.—The term ‘United
States’ includes the possessions of the United
States.
‘‘(f) SPECIAL RULES.—Rules similar to the rules of
subsections (d), (e), (f), (h), and (i) of section 4462 shall
apply for purposes of this section.’’
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sub-
chapters for chapter 36 of such Code is amended by in-
serting after the item relating to subchapter B the follow-
ing new item:
‘‘Subchapter C. Containers used to import or export cargo.’’
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall take effect on January 1, 1996.
SEC. 4. MARITIME REVITALIZATION FUND.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter A of chapter 98 of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to trust fund
code) is amended by adding at the end thereof the follow-
ing new section:
‘‘SEC. 9512. MARITIME REVITALIZATION FUND.
‘‘(a) CREATION OF FUND.—There is established in
the Treasury of the United States a trust fund to be
known as the ‘Maritime Revitalization Fund’, consisting
of such amounts as may be appropriated or credited to
such Fund as provided in this section or section 9602(b).
‘‘(b) TRANSFERS TO FUND.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There are hereby appro-
priated 
to 
the 
Maritime 
Revitalization 
Fund
amounts equivalent to the net revenues received in
the Treasury from the maritime taxes.
‘‘(2) NET REVENUES.—For purposes of para-
graph (1), the term ‘net revenues’ means the
amount estimated by the Secretary based on the ex-
cess of—
‘‘(A) the maritime taxes received in the
Treasury, over
‘‘(B) the decrease in the tax imposed by
chapter 1 resulting from the maritime taxes.
‘‘(3) MARITIME TAXES.—For purposes of this
subsection, the term ‘maritime taxes’ means—
‘‘(A) the taxes imposed by section 4471
(relating to transportation of passengers by
water) to the extent the taxes received in the
Treasury under such section exceed the amount
that the Secretary estimates would have been
received under such section without regard to
the amendments made by the Maritime Revital-
ization Fund Act of 1993, and
‘‘(B) the taxes imposed by section 4476
(relating to containers used to import or export
commercial cargo).
‘‘(c) EXPENDITURES FROM FUND.—Amounts in the
Maritime Revitalization Fund shall be available, as pro-
vided in appropriation Acts, only for purposes of making
expenditures to carry out any law which is substantially
similar to the title IV of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936
(46 App. U.S.C. 1171) proposed to be added by H.R.
2151 (The Maritime Security and Competitiveness Act of
1993) of the 103d Congress, as introduced.’’
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections
for such subchapter A is amended by adding at the end
thereof the following new item:
‘‘Sec. 9512. Maritime Revitalization Fund.’’
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