Judy Chu

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Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise today in support of H.R. 9496, the End Tax Penalties on American Hostages Act. I thank my colleagues, Ms. Tenney and Mr. Beyer, for their leadership on this bill. This is a commonsense bill that would prevent hostages, detainees, and their spouses from experiencing unnecessary financial hardships when they are unable to meet their Federal tax obligations. Often, hostages and detained Americans return home to massive tax bills from the IRS in the form of late payments, interest, and penalties, sometimes totaling tens of thousands of dollars. However, the IRS does not currently have the authority to waive filing deadlines, interest, or penalties. This bill would address this issue by postponing tax deadlines and assessments of interest and penalties for any U.S. national held hostage or detained abroad. It would also extend relief to the spouse of the hostage or detainee. Additionally, the bill enables the Secretary of the Treasury to refund and abate any relevant interest, penalties, or addition to tax that was assessed or collected on hostages and detainees since January 2021. It also requires the Secretary to ensure that databases and information systems are updated to permit proper tracking of deadlines and limitation periods applicable to individuals entitled to relief. This bill would simply remove one more unnecessary obstacle and worry for our fellow Americans during an extraordinarily difficult time. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.