MODIFICATIONS TO RETAIL TAX ON HEAVY TRUCKS.

SEC. 1434. MODIFICATIONS TO RETAIL TAX ON HEAVY TRUCKS. (a) Certain Repairs and Modifications Not Treated as Manufacture.—Section 4052 is amended by redesignating the subsection defining a long-term lease as subsection (e) and by adding at the end the following new subsection: “(f) Certain Repairs and Modifications Not Treated as Manufacture.— “(1) In general.—An article described in section 4051(a)(1) shall not be treated as manufactured or produced solely by reason of repairs or modifications to the article (including any modification which changes the transportation function of the article or restores a wrecked article to a functional condition) if the cost of such repairs and modifications does not exceed 75 percent of the retail price of a comparable new article. “(2) Exception.—Paragraph (1) shall not apply if the article (as repaired or modified) would, if new, be taxable under section 4051 and the article when new was not taxable under this section or the corresponding provision of prior law.”. (b) Simplification of Certification Procedures With Respect to Sales of Taxable Articles.— (1) Repeal of registration requirement.—Subsection (d) of section 4052 is amended by striking “rules of—” and all that follows through “shall apply” and inserting “rules of subsections (c) and (d) of section 4216 (relating to partial payments) shall apply”. (2) Requirement to modify regulations.—Section 4052 is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: “(g) Regulations.—The Secretary shall prescribe regulations which permit, in lieu of any other certification, persons who are purchasing articles taxable under this subchapter for resale or leasing in a long-term lease to execute a statement (made under penalties of perjury) on the sale invoice that such sale is for resale. The Secretary shall not impose any registration requirement as a condition of using such procedure.”. (c) Effective Date.—The amendments made by this section shall take effect on January 1, 1998.