88R17037 CJC-F
By: Thierry H.B. No. 5115
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the collection of state, municipal, and county hotel
occupancy taxes by an accommodations intermediary.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 156, Tax Code, is amended
by adding Section 156.054 to read as follows:
Sec. 156.054. TAX COLLECTION BY ACCOMMODATIONS
INTERMEDIARY. (a) For purposes of this section:
(1) "Accommodations intermediary" means a person
that:
(A) facilitates the rental of a room or space in a
hotel in this state to a person; and
(B) performs any of the following actions:
(i) charges the person renting the room or
space in the hotel any amount required to secure the rental;
(ii) collects from the person the amount
charged to rent the room or space in the hotel; or
(iii) charges the person renting the room
or space in the hotel a fee for the service described by Paragraph
(A).
(2) "Booking charge" means the charge imposed on a
person by a hotel for the use or possession or for the right to the
use or possession of a room or space in a hotel in this state and
collected by an accommodations intermediary. The term includes any
fees charged by the hotel, regardless of whether separately
itemized. The term does not include the amount charged by an
accommodations intermediary for facilitating the rental of the room
or space in the hotel. The booking charge is considered the price
paid for a room or space in a hotel for purposes of the imposition of
a hotel occupancy tax when the rental of the room or space is
facilitated by an accommodations intermediary.
(b) Notwithstanding Section 156.053 or any other law:
(1) an accommodations intermediary:
(A) shall collect the appropriate amount of the
tax imposed under this chapter on each booking charge with respect
to a hotel located in this state;
(B) shall report and remit all taxes collected by
the accommodations intermediary under Paragraph (A) in the manner
required of a person owning, operating, managing, or controlling a
hotel under this chapter; and
(C) is considered to be the person owning,
operating, managing, or controlling the hotel for purposes of the
collection and enforcement of the tax imposed under this chapter on
a booking charge for a rental made through the accommodations
intermediary; and
(2) the hotel may not collect and is not liable for a
tax imposed by this chapter on a booking charge for a rental made
through the accommodations intermediary.
(c) This section does not apply to an accommodations
intermediary that has entered into a written agreement with the
comptroller to collect and remit the tax imposed under this chapter
for the rental of a room or space in a hotel in this state
facilitated by the intermediary.
(d) The comptroller may adopt rules to implement and
administer this section.
SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 351, Tax Code, is amended
by adding Section 351.0043 to read as follows:
Sec. 351.0043. TAX COLLECTION BY ACCOMMODATIONS
INTERMEDIARY. (a) For purposes of this section, "accommodations
intermediary" and "booking charge" have the meanings assigned by
Section 156.054.
(b) Notwithstanding Section 351.004 or any other law:
(1) an accommodations intermediary:
(A) shall collect the appropriate amount of the
tax imposed under this chapter by a municipality in which a hotel is
located on each booking charge with respect to that hotel;
(B) shall report and remit all taxes collected by
the accommodations intermediary under Paragraph (A) in the manner
required of a person owning, operating, managing, or controlling a
hotel under this chapter; and
(C) is considered to be the person owning,
operating, managing, or controlling the hotel for purposes of the
collection and enforcement of the tax imposed under this chapter on
a booking charge for a rental made through the accommodations
intermediary; and
(2) the hotel may not collect and is not liable for a
tax imposed by this chapter on a booking charge for a rental made
through the accommodations intermediary.
(c) An accommodations intermediary shall report and remit
all taxes collected by the intermediary under Subsection (b) to the
comptroller according to a schedule determined by the comptroller.
(d) The comptroller shall promulgate a form an
accommodations intermediary must use to report the taxes collected
by the accommodations intermediary under this section. The form
must include the following information:
(1) the total receipts from the rental during the
reporting period of rooms and spaces in all hotels located in any
municipality and offered for rent through the accommodations
intermediary, categorized by municipality in which those hotels are
located;
(2) the total amount of booking charges from the
rental during the reporting period of rooms and spaces in all hotels
located in any municipality and offered for rent through the
accommodations intermediary, categorized by municipality in which
those hotels are located;
(3) the rate of the tax imposed under this chapter in
each municipality identified under Subdivision (2); and
(4) the total receipts and the total amount of booking
charges from the rental during the reporting period of rooms and
spaces in all hotels located in a project financing zone as defined
by Section 351.1015 and offered for rent through the accommodations
intermediary, categorized by project financing zone.
(e) The form described by Subsection (d) may not require the
identification of a specific guest or the owner or operator of a
hotel.
(f) The comptroller shall:
(1) deposit the taxes remitted to the comptroller
under this section in trust in the separate suspense account of the
municipality in which hotels with respect to which the taxes were
collected are located; and
(2) send to the municipal treasurer or to the person
who performs the office of the municipal treasurer payable to the
municipality the municipality's share of the taxes remitted to the
comptroller under this chapter at least 12 times during each state
fiscal year.
(g) A suspense account described by Subsection (f)(1) is
outside the treasury and the comptroller may make a payment from the
account without the necessity of an appropriation.
(h) Before sending any money to a municipality under
Subsection (f) and subject to the limitation provided by this
subsection, the comptroller shall deduct and deposit to the credit
of the general revenue fund an amount equal to one percent of the
amount of the taxes collected from booking charges for hotels
located in the municipality under this section during the period
for which a distribution is made as the state's charge for services
provided by the state under this section. The comptroller may not
deduct from the distributions to a municipality more than $50,000
in each state fiscal year under this subsection.
(i) An accommodations intermediary that collects the tax
imposed by this chapter is subject to audit by the comptroller. The
accommodations intermediary is entitled to seek review and to
appeal a determination made by the comptroller in relation to the
collection of a tax imposed by this chapter in the same manner
provided for a tax imposed under Chapter 151.
(j) Notwithstanding any other law, this section applies to
the collection, remittance, and distribution of taxes imposed by a
political subdivision that is authorized to impose a hotel
occupancy tax under a provision of the Special District Local Laws
Code or civil statutes in the same manner the section applies to a
municipality authorized to impose a hotel occupancy tax under this
chapter.
(k) This section does not apply to an accommodations
intermediary that has entered into an agreement with a municipality
or other political subdivision to collect and remit hotel occupancy
taxes for the rental of a room or space in a hotel in the
municipality or political subdivision that is facilitated by the
intermediary and provided written notice of the agreement to the
comptroller.
(l) The comptroller may adopt rules to implement and
administer this section.
SECTION 3. Subchapter A, Chapter 352, Tax Code, is amended
by adding Section 352.0042 to read as follows:
Sec. 352.0042. TAX COLLECTION BY ACCOMMODATIONS
INTERMEDIARY. (a) For purposes of this section, "accommodations
intermediary" and "booking charge" have the meanings assigned by
Section 156.054.
(b) Notwithstanding Section 352.004 or any other law:
(1) an accommodations intermediary:
(A) shall collect the appropriate amount of the
tax imposed under this chapter by a county in which a hotel is
located on each booking charge with respect to that hotel;
(B) shall report and remit all taxes collected by
the accommodations intermediary under Paragraph (A) in the manner
required of a person owning, operating, managing, or controlling a
hotel under this chapter; and
(C) is considered to be the person owning,
operating, managing, or controlling the hotel for purposes of the
collection and enforcement of the tax imposed under this chapter on
a booking charge for a rental made through the accommodations
intermediary; and
(2) the hotel may not collect and is not liable for a
tax imposed by this chapter on a booking charge for a rental made
through the accommodations intermediary.
(c) An accommodations intermediary shall report and remit
all taxes collected by the intermediary under Subsection (b) to the
comptroller according to a schedule determined by the comptroller.
(d) The comptroller shall promulgate a form an
accommodations intermediary must use to report the taxes collected
by the accommodations intermediary under this section. The form
must include the following information:
(1) the total receipts from the rental during the
reporting period of rooms and spaces in all hotels located in any
county and offered for rent through the accommodations
intermediary, categorized by county in which those hotels are
located;
(2) the total amount of booking charges from the
rental during the reporting period of rooms and spaces in all hotels
located in any county and offered for rent through the
accommodations intermediary, categorized by county in which those
hotels are located; and
(3) the rate of the tax imposed under this chapter in
each county identified under Subdivision (2).
(e) The form described by Subsection (d) may not require the
identification of a specific guest or the owner or operator of a
hotel.
(f) The comptroller shall:
(1) deposit the taxes remitted to the comptroller
under this section in trust in the separate suspense account of the
county in which hotels with respect to which the taxes were
collected are located; and
(2) send to the county treasurer payable to the county
the county's share of the taxes remitted to the comptroller under
this chapter at least 12 times during each state fiscal year.
(g) A suspense account described by Subsection (f)(1) is
outside the treasury and the comptroller may make a payment from the
account without the necessity of an appropriation.
(h) Before sending any money to a county under Subsection
(f) and subject to the limitation provided by this subsection, the
comptroller shall deduct and deposit to the credit of the general
revenue fund an amount equal to one percent of the amount of the
taxes collected from booking charges for hotels located in the
county under this section during the period for which a
distribution is made as the state's charge for services provided by
the state under this section. The comptroller may not deduct from
the distributions to a county more than $50,000 in each state fiscal
year under this subsection.
(i) An accommodations intermediary that collects the tax
imposed by this chapter is subject to audit by the comptroller. The
accommodations intermediary is entitled to seek review and to
appeal a determination made by the comptroller in relation to the
collection of a tax imposed by this chapter in the same manner
provided for a tax imposed under Chapter 151.
(j) Notwithstanding any other law, this section applies to
the collection, remittance, and distribution of taxes imposed by a
political subdivision that is authorized to impose a hotel
occupancy tax under a provision of the Special District Local Laws
Code or civil statutes in the same manner the section applies to a
county authorized to impose a hotel occupancy tax under this
chapter.
(k) This section does not apply to an accommodations
intermediary that has entered into an agreement with a county or
other political subdivision to collect and remit hotel occupancy
taxes for the rental of a room or space in a hotel in the county or
political subdivision that is facilitated by the intermediary and
provided written notice of the agreement to the comptroller.
(l) The comptroller may adopt rules to implement and
administer this section.
SECTION 4. Sections 334.253(a) and (b), Local Government
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) Sections 351.002(c), 351.004, 351.0041, 351.0043,
351.005, and 351.006, Tax Code, govern the imposition, computation,
administration, collection, and remittance of a municipal tax
authorized under this subchapter except as inconsistent with this
subchapter.
(b) Sections 352.002(c), 352.004, 352.0041, 352.0042,
352.005, and 352.007, Tax Code, govern the imposition, computation,
administration, collection, and remittance of a county tax
authorized under this subchapter except as inconsistent with this
subchapter.
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.