Rep. Greg Steube Leads 78 Colleagues in Bipartisan Effort Demanding Senate Leadership Bring Disaster Tax Relief to the Floor
Americans Impacted By Hurricane Debby and 300+ Disasters in 48 States Will Receive Tax Relief
WASHINGTON – U.S. Rep. Greg Steube. (R-Fla.) today led 78 House colleagues in a sweeping bipartisan effort to demand the U.S. Senate vote on his legislation, H.R. 5863 The Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2023.
“Since the Senate failed to pass the bipartisan tax package, which included my bill to deliver tax relief, Senate leadership must now permit my stand-alone disaster relief bill to pass swiftly through the Senate on unanimous consent.” said Rep. Steube. “My bill precedes the larger package and received resounding support across the aisle in the House (382-7). Americans can’t wait for disaster relief. Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina sustained major impacts from Hurricane Debby, further underscoring the need to pass this bill as soon as possible. Millions of Americans affected by more than 300 disasters in 48 states will be helped by this legislation. The Senate must finish the job.”
“This is a crusade I began fighting after my coastal Florida Gulf district was hit with Category 5 Hurricane Ian,” continued Rep. Steube. “Since then, I’ve built a coalition of Congressional members advocating for their own disaster-stricken districts.”
Rep. Steube was joined in his letter to Senators Schumer, McConnell, Wyden and Crapo by co-lead Rep. Mike Thompson (D-Calif.) and Representatives Don Bacon (R-Neb.), Andy Barr (R-Ky.), Nanette Barragán (D-Calif.), Don Beyer (D-Va.), Stephanie Bice (R-Okla.), Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), Julia Brownley (D-Calif.), Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.), Kat Cammack (R-Fla.), Salud Carbajal (D-Calif.), Tony Cárdenas (D-Calif.), Troy Carter (D-La.), Ed Case (D-Hawaii), Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-Ore.), Jim Costa (D-Calif.), Danny Davis (D-Ill.), Madeleine Dean (D-Pa.), Diana DeGette (D-Colo.), Christopher Deluzio (D-Pa.), Mark DeSaulnier (D-Calif.), Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.), Byron Donalds (R-Fla.), Neal Dunn (R-Fla.), Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.), Brian Fitzpatrick, Scott Franklin (R-Fla.), Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), John Garamendi (D-Calif.), Mike Garcia (R-Calif.), Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), Sylvia Garcia (D-Calif.), Carolos Gimenez (R-Fla.), Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.), Josh Harder (D-Calif.), Clay Higgins (R-La.), Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.), Hank Johnson (D-Ga.), Ro Khanna (D-Calif), Kevin Kiley (R-Calif), Doug LaMalfa (R-Calif), Barbara Lee (D-Calif), Laurel Lee (R-Fla.), Morgan Luttrell (R-Texas), Nancy Mace (R-S.C.), Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.), Kevin Mullin (D-Calif.), Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), Joe Neguse (D-Colo.), Troy Nehls (R-Texas), Jay Obernolte (R-Calif.), Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif.), Marie Perez (D-Wash.), Brittany Pettersen (D-Colo.), Katie Porter (D-Calif.), Bill Posey (R-Fla.), Maria Salazar (R-Fla.), Andrea Salinas (D-Ore.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif), Hillary Scholten (D-Mich.), Terri Sewell (D-Ala.), Eric Sorensen (D-Ill.), Darren Soto (D-Fla.), Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.), Greg Stanton (D-Ariz.), Tom Suozzi (D-N.Y.), Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.), Mark Takano (D-Calif), Shri Thanedar (D-Mich.), Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), Mike Thompson (D-Calif.), Dina Titus (D-Nev.), Jill Tokuda (D-Hawaii), Juan Vargas (D-Calif), Gabe Vasquez (D-N.M.), Waltz (R-Fla.), Waters (D-Calif.)
Excerpts from the letter are below. Read the full letter here.
Impact: “Through no fault of their own, too many Americans have incurred thousands of dollars in disaster-related expenses. Many others are also facing unfair tax burdens as a result of being heavily taxed on rightful compensation from being the victim of a wildfire disaster. The Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2023 is a comprehensive bill that includes coverage to over 300 disasters across 47 states as well as addressing both wildfire payments and the East Palestine, Ohio train derailment.”
Historic Support Behind A Successful Discharge Petition: “After this successful discharge petition, the bill was scheduled for a vote on May 21, 2024, when it passed 382- 7. This was the third successful discharge petition in the 21st century. The previous two, in 2002 and 2015, were both measures taken up by the Senate and signed into law by the President. It is our hope that the historic significance of our discharge petition on the Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2023 demonstrates to the Senate the weight of its importance.”
Americans Deserve Disaster Tax Relief: “All of our constituents know the devastating nature of disaster recovery all too well. It is our sincere hope that the Senate will take up the Federal Disaster Tax Relief of 2023 on unanimous consent to swiftly pass this bill so the President can sign it into law quickly.”
Background
Rep. Steube first introduced legislation to treat Hurricane Ian as a qualified disaster area for purposes of the disaster-related casualty loss tax deduction in March of 2023. His comprehensive bill, H.R. 5863 The Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act, expanded the requested disaster tax relief to cover all federally declared disasters since 2022, including wildfires, the Ohio train derailment, and additional hurricanes. His legislation passed the Ways and Means Committee unanimously (38-0) on November 2, 2023.
H.R. 5863 The Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act passed the U.S. House twice. The legislation passed the House as part of The Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act on January 31, 2024 (357 – 70). The bipartisan tax package ultimately failed in the U.S. Senate. The legislation passed the U.S. House again on May 21, 2024 (382 – 7) after Rep. Steube’s historic Discharge Petition to force a House vote succeeded.
