Alexandria, VA – February 21, 2025 – Today, Representatives Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) and Blake Moore (R-UT), along with several bipartisan cosponsors, introduced the Sporting Goods Excise Tax Modernization Act. This bill would ensure collection of excise taxes on fishing equipment in transactions of foreign products sold directly to U.S. consumers through online marketplaces, leveling the playing field for all tax-paying companies and boosting conservation funding.
Passed in 1950, the Dingell-Johnson Act authorizes the collection of up to 10% excise tax on the sale of sportfishing equipment. The tax is deposited into the Sport Fish Restoration Fund (SFR), which grants the money to state, commonwealth and territory fish and wildlife agencies to restore habitat, create and maintain public access and fund fisheries research.
“The Sporting Goods Excise Tax Modernization Act will secure millions of dollars in lost funds to improve recreational fishing in America,” said Mike Leonard, Vice President of Government Affairs at the American Sportfishing Association. “For 75 years, our members have supported this user-pay, public-benefit program, which has served as the cornerstone of the American conservation model. We applaud the bipartisan support of this important legislation and look forward to working with members of Congress to see it become law.”
The bill closes a loophole by requiring online marketplaces to collect the fishing and archery equipment excise taxes from direct-from-overseas-to-U.S.-consumer sales. Currently, these excise taxes are generally not collected on products sold by foreign manufacturers via online marketplaces, and under current law the responsibility falls on the consumer without their knowledge.
Without action by Congress, excise tax slippage will only continue to increase as online purchases become even more popular, putting tax-paying manufacturers at a competitive disadvantage and shortchanging fisheries conservation.
Since its founding, SFR funds have contributed to the maintenance and operation of 9,000 public boating and fishing access areas, 320 state fish hatcheries that stock 1 billion fish annually, and provided aquatic education and introduced more than 850,000 individuals to fishing.
The Sporting Goods Excise Tax Modernization Act also affects the import of archery equipment under the Pittman-Robertson Act. The Dingell-Johnson and Pittman-Robertson Acts collectively allocated more than $1.3 billion in grants in FY 2025.
The bill is co-Lead by Rep. Mike Thompson (D-CA), Rep. Greg Murphy (R-NC), Rep. Troy Carter, Sr. (D-LA), Rep. August Pfluger (R-TX). It has been endorsed by more than 60 fish and wildlife conservation associations, including ASA.
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