Is Congress going to provide us any additional tax relief? We hope so…
According to Senator Feinstein’s office, Senators Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris (both D-Calif.) joined with Senators Richard Burr (R-N.C.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) to introduce the Hurricanes Florence and Michael and California Wildfire Tax Relief Act (S. 3648), to aid victims of recent natural disasters.
“It’s heartbreaking to see our communities devastated by wildfire and hurricanes,” said Senator Feinstein. “Our bipartisan bill will help families recover by providing them with much-needed tax relief as we begin to rebuild in the aftermath of these natural disasters.”
“The wildfires that tore across California this year claimed precious lives, devastated communities, destroyed thousands of homes, and forced hundreds of thousands of Californians to evacuate,” said Senator Harris. “The road to recovery for these communities won’t be easy, and we have a responsibility to give them the federal support they desperately need. Today, I am proud to join with my colleagues to provide these families working to rebuild their lives with much-needed tax relief.”
Background
The Hurricane Florence and Michael and California Wildfire Tax Relief Act:
- Allows more taxpayers to claim a deduction for personal property losses by removing the itemize requirement.
- Removes penalties on certain hardship withdrawals from retirement accounts.
- Encourages employers in hard-hit areas to retain employees.
- Allows taxpayers to use earned income from the preceding year when claiming Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit.
- Suspends limits on charitable contributions to disaster relief efforts.
- Expands Opportunity Zones to hardest-hit areas.
You can read a copy of the bill here.