Conn. House passes ban on tax-dodging devices

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — A bill that would ban the use of "zapper" devices used to create fake retail sales transaction records to avoid taxes is one step closer to becoming law in Connecticut.

The state's House of Representatives passed the measure 147-to-0 Wednesday. The proposed bill now awaits action in the state Senate.

The bill, developed by the Departments of Revenue Services, Consumer Protection and Attorney General, would make it a felony to sell, buy, install, transfer or possess such an automatic sales suppression technology or "zappers."

Proponents of the bill say the technology can easily be installed in electronic cash register systems, allowing merchants to automatically under-report and under-pay the amount of sales tax that should be paid for a particular item.