I 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 4175 
To protect consumers from discriminatory State taxes on motor vehicle 
rentals. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 2, 2009 
Mr. BOUCHER (for himself, Mr. AKIN, Mr. CARNAHAN, Mr. GRAVES, Mr. 
BOREN, Mr. SULLIVAN, Mr. ISRAEL, Mr. WILSON of South Carolina, and 
Mr. CARTER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To protect consumers from discriminatory State taxes on 
motor vehicle rentals. 
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 ‘‘End Discriminatory 
State Taxes for Automobile Renters Act of 2009’’. 
SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 
The purpose of this Act is to prohibit prospectively, 
and provide a remedy for tax discrimination by a State 
or Locality against the rental of motor vehicles. 
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SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
(a) ASSESSMENT
AND
ASSESSMENT
JURISDIC-
TION.—The term ‘‘assessment’’ means valuation for a 
property tax levied by a taxing district. The term ‘‘assess-
ment jurisdiction’’ means a geographical area in a State 
or Locality used in determining the assessed value of prop-
erty for ad valorem taxation. 
(b) COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY.—The 
term ‘‘commercial and industrial property’’ means prop-
erty, other than motor vehicle rental property and land 
used primarily for agricultural purposes or timber grow-
ing, devoted to a commercial or industrial use, and subject 
to a property tax levy. 
(c) DISCRIMINATORY TAX.—The term ‘‘discrimina-
tory tax’’ includes the following: 
(1) A tax discriminates against the rental of 
motor vehicles if a State or Locality imposes the tax 
on, or with respect to— 
(A) the rental of motor vehicles but not on, 
or with respect to, the rental of more than 51 
percent of the rentals of other tangible personal 
property rented within the State or Locality, or 
(B) the rental of motor vehicles at a tax 
rate that exceeds the tax rate generally applica-
ble to at least 51 percent of the rentals of other 
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tangible personal property within the same 
State or Locality. 
(2) A tax discriminates against the business of 
renting motor vehicles if a State or Locality imposes 
the tax on, or with respect to— 
(A) the business of renting motor vehicles 
but not on, or with respect to, the business of 
more than 51 percent of the other commercial 
and industrial taxpayers within the State or Lo-
cality, on the same tax base as the State or Lo-
cality employs with respect to the business of 
renting motor vehicles, or 
(B) the business of renting motor vehicles, 
at a tax rate that exceeds the tax rate generally 
applicable to the business of more than 51 per-
cent of the other commercial and industrial tax-
payers within the State or Local jurisdiction. 
(3) A tax discriminates against motor vehicle 
rental property if a State or Locality— 
(A) assesses motor vehicle rental property 
at a value that has a higher ratio to the true 
market value of the property than the ratio that 
the assessed value of other commercial and in-
dustrial property of the same type in the same 
assessment jurisdiction has to the true market 
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value of the other commercial and industrial 
property, 
(B) levies or collects a tax on an assess-
ment that may not be made under subpara-
graph (A), or 
(C) levies or collects an ad valorem prop-
erty tax on motor vehicle rental property at a 
tax rate that exceeds the tax rate applicable to 
commercial and industrial property in the same 
assessment jurisdiction. 
(d) LOCAL OR LOCALITY.—The terms ‘‘Local’’ and 
‘‘Locality’’ mean a political subdivision of any State, or 
any governmental entity or person acting on behalf of such 
Locality, and with the authority to impose, levy or collect 
taxes. 
(e) MOTOR VEHICLE.—The term ‘‘motor vehicle’’ has 
the same meaning as in section 13102(16) of title 49 of 
the United States Code. 
(f) OTHER COMMERCIAL
AND INDUSTRIAL TAX-
PAYERS.—The term ‘‘other commercial and industrial tax-
payers’’ means persons or entities who are engaged in 
trade or business within a State or Locality and who are 
subject to some form of taxation by a State or Locality. 
(g) RENTAL OF MOTOR VEHICLES.—The term ‘‘rent-
al of motor vehicles’’ means the rental of a motor vehicle 
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that is given by the owner of the motor vehicle for exclu-
sive use to another for not longer than 180 days for valu-
able consideration and only includes the rental of motor 
vehicles with a pre-arranged driver or motor vehicles with-
out a driver, but shall not include taxi cab service as de-
fined by section 13102(20) of title 49 of the United States 
Code. 
(h) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means any of the sev-
eral States, the District of Columbia or any territory or 
possession of the United States, or any governmental enti-
ty or person acting on behalf of such State, and with the 
authority to impose, levy or collect taxes. 
(i) TAX.—Except as otherwise specifically provided 
below, the term ‘‘tax’’ means any type of charge required 
by statute, regulation or agreement to be paid or furnished 
to a State or Locality, regardless of whether such charge 
is denominated as a tax, a fee, or any other type of exac-
tion. The term ‘‘tax’’ does not include any charge imposed 
by a State or Locality with respect to a concession agree-
ment at a federally assisted airport (provided the agree-
ment does not violate the revenue diversion provisions of 
section 40116(d) of title 49 of the United States Code, 
or the registration, licensing, or inspection of motor vehi-
cles, if the charge is imposed generally with respect to 
motor vehicles, without regard to whether such vehicles 
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are used in the business of renting motor vehicles within 
the State or Locality. 
(j) TAX BASE.—The term ‘‘tax base’’ means the re-
ceipts, income, value, weight, or other measure of a tax 
to which the rate is applied. The ‘‘tax base’’ of a tax im-
posed on a per unit basis is the unit. 
(k) TAX RATE GENERALLY APPLICABLE TO OTHER 
COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL TAXPAYERS.—The term 
‘‘tax rate generally applicable to other commercial and in-
dustrial taxpayers’’ means the lower of— 
(1) the tax rate imposed on the greatest num-
ber of other commercial and industrial taxpayers or 
their customers, or 
(2) the unweighted average rate at which the 
tax is imposed. 
SEC. 4. PROHIBITED ACTS. 
No State or Locality may levy or collect a discrimina-
tory tax on the rental of motor vehicles, the business of 
renting motor vehicles, or motor vehicle rental property. 
SEC. 5. REMEDIES. 
(a) JURISDICTION.—Notwithstanding any provision 
of section 1341 of title 28, United States Code, or the 
constitution or laws of any State, the district courts of 
the United States shall have jurisdiction, without regard 
to amount in controversy or citizenship of the parties, to 
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