Sales Tax Modernization: Timing Change 1
SECTION 94.
(a) As used in this section, the following words shall, have the following meanings unless the context clearly requires otherwise:-
"Third party payment processor", any person or entity engaged in the business of remitting payments to vendors or operators under chapters 64G, 64H, 64or 64L of the General Laws, in association with credit card, debit card, or similar payment arrangements that compensate the vendor or operator in transactions subject to the excise under said chapters.
"Vendor or operator", a business, with a number of employees to be determined by the commissioner, that is required to file a return under section 16 of chapter 62C of the General Laws.
(b) The commissioner of revenue shall promulgate regulations in accordance with section 2 of chapter 30A, including the requirements that a public hearing be held and that a small business impact statement be filed, to implement methods to effectuate accelerated sales tax remittance, identify noncompliant vendors, operators, and third party payment processors, and to ensure that the excise under chapter 64G, 64H, 64or 64L of the General Laws is collected and remitted. The regulations shall ensure, at a minimum, that: (i) any vendor or operator, when seeking payments from or through a third party payment processor, separately identifies tax amounts charged in association with the excise under said chapter 64G, 64H, 64or 64L and non-tax amounts for which payment is sought; (ii) any third party payment processor, upon receiving a request for payment from a vendor or operator, shall directly pay the identified tax portion of such request to the commissioner, at substantially the same time that any non-tax balance is paid to the vendor or operator, the frequency of which shall be determined by the commissioner; (iii) third party payment processors report total payments made to the commissioner on a monthly return, which shall identify each vendor or operator to whom payments were made during the month as well as the amount of tax paid to the commissioner during the month in association with transactions with each such vendor or operator; and (iv) third party payment processors report, on a monthly basis, to each vendor or operator with whom they conduct business, the total tax remitted to the commissioner with respect to transactions of the particular vendor or operator during the monthly period. In developing the regulations, the commissioner shall consider the impact of the implementation of the methods described in this subsection, including, but not limited to, consideration of the following: (i) established industry practices; (ii) technological feasibility; (iii) financial impacts on consumers and businesses; (iv) the fiscal impact on the commonwealth; (v) relevant federal or state laws and regulations; and (vi) limitations on applicability to mobile telecommunications services, as defined by section 1 of chapter 64H, and telecommunications services, as defined by said section 1 of said chapter 64H.
(c) Tax amounts paid to the commissioner by a third party payment processor in association with the processing of transactions of a particular vendor or operator during the month shall be available as a credit to the vendor or operator in the filing of returns showing tax due under chapter 64G, 64H, 64or 64L, as applicable.