{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://norton.house.gov/media/press-releases/norton-introduces-bill-allow-state-and-local-governments-charge-sales-tax-0", "Norton Introduces Bill to Allow State and Local Governments to Charge Sales Tax at Gift Shops on Federal Property", "2025-05-29", "2025", "2025-05", "Democrat", "House", "DC", "Eleanor Holmes Norton", "N000147", "norton.house.gov", "norton", "https://norton.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) introduced her Federal Gift Shop Tax Act today to allow state and local governments to impose a sales tax on purchases at gift shops located on federal property.\n\n\u201cWhen the federal government engages in activity that is not inherently governmental, such as operating a gift shop, there is no reason to exempt customer purchases from a sales tax. The items sold at federal gift shops, such as jewelry, games and books, are subject to a sales tax if sold on private property.\n\n\u201cState and local governments often provide uncompensated services to federal property, such as EMS and fire service, and allowing them to impose a sales tax on gift shops would allow them to recoup some of those costs,\u201d Norton said. \u201cThis bill is of particular importance to the District of Columbia, as it is home to a number of gift shops on federal property, such as at the Smithsonian Institution, the National Gallery of Art and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.\u201d\n\nNorton\u2019s introductory statement follows.\n\nStatement of Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton\n\nOn the Introduction of the Federal Gift Shop Tax Act\n\nMay 29, 2025\n\nToday, I introduce the Federal Gift Shop Tax Act, which would allow state and local governments to impose a sales tax at gift shops on federal property. This authority would allow these governments to generate millions of dollars in new tax revenue.\n\nWhen the federal government engages in activity that is not inherently governmental, such as operating a gift shop, there is no reason to exempt customer purchases from a sales tax. The items sold at federal gift shops, such as jewelry, games and books, are subject to a sales tax if sold on private property.\n\nCustomers are often unaware of the sales tax exemption at gift shops on federal property, so the introduction of a sales tax is unlikely to have a significant impact on sales. It would, however, create a new revenue source for state and local governments. In addition, state and local governments often provide uncompensated services on federal property, such as fire and emergency medical services, so allowing these governments to impose a sales tax at gift shops on federal property would allow them to recoup some of these costs.\n\nThis bill is of particular importance to the District of Columbia, which is home to a number of gift shops on federal property, such as at the Smithsonian Institution and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.\n\nI urge my colleagues to support this bill.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T00:49:36Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://norton.house.gov/media/press-releases/norton-introduces-bill-allow-state-and-local-governments-charge-sales-tax-0"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.790914986282587, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}