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.