The Constitutional Amendment Bill - 115th for GST

This Act may be called the Constitution (One Hindered and Fifteenth Amendment).

It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification in the official Gazette, appoint, and different dates may be appointed for different provisions of this Act and any reference in any such provision to the commencement of this Act shall be construed as a reference to the commencement of that provision.
Goods and services tax on supplies in the course of inter-State trade or commerce shall be levied and collected by the Government of India and such tax shall be apportioned between the Union and the States in the manner as may be prescribed by Parliament by law.
For the purposes of this clause, supply of goods or of services or both in the course of import into the territory of India shall be deemed to be supply of goods, or of services, or both in the course of inter-State trade or commerce.
Parliament may, by law, formulate the principles for determining when a supply of goods, or of services, or both takes place in the course of inter-State trade or commerce.

Goods and Services Tax Council

The President shall, within sixty days from the date of commencement of the Constitution (One Hundred and Fifteenth Amendment) Act, 2011, by order, constitute a Council to be called the Goods and Services Tax Council.
The Goods and Services Tax Council shall consist of the following members, 4 5
namely :
(a) the Union Finance Minister - Chairperson;
(b) the Union Minister of State in charge of Revenue - Member
(c) the Minister in charge of Finance or Taxation or any other Minister nominated by each State Government - Members
The Members of the Goods and Services Tax Council shall, as soon as may be, choose one amongst themselves to be the Vice-Chairperson of the Council for such period as they may decide.

The Goods and Services Tax Council shall make recommendations to the Union and the States on-
(a) the taxes, cesses and surcharges levied by the Centre, the States and the local bodies which may be subsumed in the goods and services tax;
(b) the goods and services that may be subjected to or exempted from the goods and services tax;
(c) the threshold limit of turnover below which goods and services tax may be exempted;
(d) the rates of goods and services tax; and
(e) any other matter relating to the goods and services tax, as the Council may decide.

While discharging the functions conferred by this article, the Goods and
Services Tax Council shall be guided by the need for a harmonised structure of goods and services tax and for the development of a harmonised national market for goods and services. 0ne-third of the total number of members of the Goods and Services Tax. Council shall constitute the quorum at its meetings. The Goods and Services Tax Council shall determine the procedure in the
performance of its functions. Every decision of the Goods and Services Tax Council taken at a meeting shall be with the consensus of all the members present at the meeting.

Goods and Services Tax Dispute Settlement Authority

Parliament may, by law, provide for the establishment of a Goods and Services Tax Dispute Settlement Authority to adjudicate any dispute or complaint referred to it by a State Government or the Government of India arising out of a deviation from any of the recommendations of the Goods and Services Tax Council constituted under article 279A that results in a loss of revenue to a State Government or the Government of lndia or affects the harmonised structure of the goods and services tax.

The Goods and Services Tax Dispute Settlement Authority shall consist of a Chairperson and two other members. The Chairperson of the Goods and Services Tax Dispute Settlement Authority shall be a person who has been a Judge of the Supreme Court or Chief Justice of a High Court to be appointed by the President on the recommendation of the Chief Justice of lndia. The two other members of the Goods and Services Tax. Dispute Settlement Authority shall be persons of proven capacity and expertise in the field of Jaw, economics or public affairs to be appointed by the President on the recommendation of the Goods and Services Tax Council. The Goods and Services Tax Dispute Settlement Authority shall pass suitable orders including interim orders. No Court other than the Supreme Court shall exercise jurisdiction in respect of any such adjudication or dispute or complain.