HR 4123 · 112th Congress 2011–2013, ended

Fair Playing Field Act of 2012

Introduced Mar 1, 2012 Originated House Sponsor Jim McDermott D-WA

Fact sheet Spreadsheet

Latest action · Mar 1, 2012 Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

Progress

Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.

  1. IntroducedMar 1, 2012
  2. Passed HouseNot reached
  3. Passed SenateNot reached
  4. To the PresidentNot reached
  5. Became lawNot reached

Summary

Fair Playing Field Act of 2012 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the classification of workers for employment tax purposes, to: (1) repeal the prohibition against issuance of regulations and guidance by the Secretary of the Treasury on workers' employment tax status (i.e., as an employee or as an independent contractor) enacted by the Revenue Act of 1978; (2) direct the Secretary to issue regulations and other guidance to clarify the proper employment status of workers for employment tax purposes; (3) prohibit a retroactive assessment of employment tax, except with respect to certain skilled workers, for tax periods after December 31, 1978, and before a specified reclassification date for worker misclassifications, unless the taxpayer had no reasonable basis for not treating a worker as an employee; (4) require taxpayers who hire independent contractors on a regular and ongoing basis to provide such contractors with notice of their federal tax obligations, the labor and employment law protections that do not apply to them, and their right to seek a status determination from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS); and (5) eliminate reduced penalty provisions for failure to withhold income taxes for taxpayers who lack a reasonable basis for treating a worker as other than an employee (i.e., as an independent contractor).

Provides that for purposes of determining whether a registered representative of a securities broker-dealer is an employee for employment tax purposes, no weight shall be given to instructions from a service recipient which are imposed only in compliance with investor protection standards. Makes this rule applicable to services performed by a broker-dealer after December 31, 1997.

Cosponsors 33

Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Mar 1, 2012 to Aug 2, 2012; 27 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.

SeatCosponsorSigned on
D-FLAlcee L. HastingsOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-MNBetty McCollumOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-OHBetty SuttonOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-NYCarolyn B. MaloneyOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-NYCharles B. RangelOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-IADavid LoebsackOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-AZEd PastorOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-DCEleanor Holmes NortonOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-CAFortney Pete StarkOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-NYGary L. AckermanOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-CAJackie SpeierOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-MAJames P. McGovernOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-ILJanice D. SchakowskyOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-NYJerrold NadlerOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-ILJesse L. Jackson, Jr.OriginalMar 1, 2012
D-MIJohn Conyers, Jr.OriginalMar 1, 2012
D-MAJohn F. TierneyOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-GAJohn LewisOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-CAJudy ChuOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-ILLuis V. GutierrezOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-INPeter J. ViscloskyOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-PARobert A. BradyOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-WIRon KindOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-CTRosa L. DeLauroOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-NJRush HoltOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-MISander M. LevinOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-MNTimothy J. WalzOriginalMar 1, 2012
D-WAAdam SmithMar 6, 2012
D-NJBill Pascrell, Jr.Mar 6, 2012
D-CALinda T. SánchezMar 6, 2012
D-CASam FarrMar 6, 2012
D-CAXavier BecerraMar 6, 2012
D-CODiana DeGetteAug 2, 2012

Committees 1

Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.

ChamberCommitteeWhat it did
HouseWays and Means Committee
Referred Mar 1, 2012

Actions 2

Everything that happened, newest first.

  1. Mar 1, 2012Introduced in House
  2. Mar 1, 2012Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

Research

What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.

Constitutional authority

Congress has the power to enact this legislation pursuant to the following: Article I Section 8. The Congress shall have Power To . . . regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;

The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the page H1134.

Related bills 4

Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.

BillTitleRelationshipLatest action
S 2145Fair Playing Field Act of 2012Identical billMar 1, 2012
S 2252Rebuild America ActRelated billMar 29, 2012
HR 5727Rebuild America ActRelated billJun 4, 2012
HR 6653Independent Contractor Tax Fairness and Simplification Act of 2012Related billDec 12, 2012

Titles 2

Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.

Official Title as Introduced
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to permit the Secretary of the Treasury to issue prospective guidance clarifying the employment status of individuals for purposes of employment taxes and to prevent retroactive assessments with respect to such clarifications.
Short Titles as Introduced
Fair Playing Field Act of 2012

Subjects

Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Taxation.

Text 1

Each version as it was printed, newest first.

  1. Mar 1, 2012Introduced in House

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Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.