Maryland HB 809: Sales and Use Tax - Taxable Services - Telephone Answering Service

Bill Text

EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MATTER ADDED TO EXISTING LAW. 
        [Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law. 
           *hb0809*   
  
HOUSE BILL 809 
Q4 EMERGENCY BILL 9lr2779 
    CF 9lr2902 
By: Delegates  Palakovich Carr,  Barve,  Buckel,  Cassilly,  Gilchrist,  Hornberger, 
Luedtke, Reilly, Rose, Shoemaker, and Smith 
Introduced and read first time: February 8, 2019 
Assigned to: Ways and Means 
 
A BILL ENTITLED 
 
AN ACT concerning 1 
 
Sales and Use Tax – Taxable Services – Telephone Answering Service 2 
 
FOR the purpose of defining “telephone answering service” for the purpose of establishing 3 
that the service is taxable under the sales and use tax only if the service is provided 4 
in a certain manner; establishing that a telephone answering service is not a taxable 5 
service if certain acts are only incidental to and a certain percentage of certain gross 6 
receipts; making this Act an emergency measure; and generally relating to the sales 7 
and use tax. 8 
 
BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 9 
 Article – Tax – General 10 
Section 11–101(a) and (m)(7) 11 
 Annotated Code of Maryland 12 
 (2016 Replacement Volume and 2018 Supplement) 13 
 
BY adding to 14 
 Article – Tax – General 15 
Section 11–101(m–1) 16 
 Annotated Code of Maryland 17 
 (2016 Replacement Volume and 2018 Supplement) 18 
 
 SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 19 
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 20 
 
Article – Tax – General 21 
 
11–101. 22 
 
 (a) In this title the following words have the meanings indicated. 23 
 

2 HOUSE BILL 809  
 
 
 (m) “Taxable service” means: 1 
 
  (7) a telephone answering service; 2 
 
 (M–1) (1) “TELEPHONE ANSWERING SERVICE” MEANS A SERVICE PROVIDED 3 
TO  A  CUSTOMER  THAT  CONSISTS  EXCLUSIVELY OF THE TAKING OF MESSAGES, 4 
EITHER BY AN AUTOMATED SYSTEM OR BY A LIVE OPERATOR, AND TRANSMITTING 5 
THE MESSAGES TO THE CUSTOMER. 6 
 
  (2) “TELEPHONE  ANSWERING  SERVICE” DOES  NOT  INCLUDE THE 7 
PHYSICAL ACT  OF  ANSWERING  A  TELEPHONE ON  BEHALF  OF  A  CUSTOMER, IF  THE 8 
ACT  IS  INCIDENTAL TO  AND  LESS  THAN 5% OF THE SERVICE  PROVIDER’S  TOTAL 9 
GROSS RECEIPTS IN A CALENDAR YEAR. 10 
 
 SECTION  2.  AND  BE  IT  FURTHER  ENACTED,  That  this  Act  is  an  emergency 11 
measure,  is  necessary  for  the  immediate  preservation  of  the  public  health  or  safety,  has 12 
been passed by a yea and nay vote supported by three–fifths of all the members elected to 13 
each of the two Houses of the General Assembly, and shall take effect from the date it is 14 
enacted. 15