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September 15, 2026
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Download official House Record PDFReturn to issue contextMr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 9496) to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to postpone tax deadlines and reimburse paid late fees for United States nationals who are unlawfully or wrongfully detained or held hostage abroad, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 9496
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the “End Tax Penalties on
American Hostages Act”.
SEC. 2. POSTPONEMENT OF TAX DEADLINES FOR HOSTAGES AND
INDIVIDUALS WRONGFULLY DETAINED ABROAD.
(a) In General.—Chapter 77 of the Internal Revenue Code of
1986 is amended by inserting after section 7510 the following
new section:
“SEC. 7511. TIME FOR PERFORMING CERTAIN ACTS POSTPONED FOR
HOSTAGES AND INDIVIDUALS WRONGFULLY DETAINED
ABROAD.
“(a) Time to Be Disregarded.—
“(1) In general.—The period during which an applicable
individual was unlawfully or wrongfully detained abroad, or
held hostage abroad, shall be disregarded in determining,
under the internal revenue laws, in respect of any tax
liability of such individual—
“(A) whether any of the acts described in section
7508(a)(1) were performed within the time prescribed thereof
(determined without regard to extension under any other
provision of this subtitle for periods after the initial date
(as determined by the Secretary) on which such individual was
unlawfully or wrongfully detained abroad or held hostage
abroad),
“(B) the amount of any interest, penalty, additional
amount, or addition to the tax for periods after such date,
and
“(C) the amount of any credit or refund.
“(2) Application to spouse.—The provisions of paragraph
(1) shall apply to the spouse of any individual entitled to
the benefits of such paragraph.
“(b) Applicable Individual.—
“(1) In general.—For purposes of this section, the term
`applicable individual' means any individual who is—
“(A) a United States national unlawfully or wrongfully
detained abroad, as determined under section 302 of the
Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking
Accountability Act (22 U.S.C. 1741), or
“(B) a United States national taken hostage abroad, as
determined pursuant to the findings of the Hostage Recovery
Fusion Cell (as described in section 304 of the Robert
Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability
Act (22 U.S.C. 1741b)).
“(2) Information provided to treasury.—For purposes of
identifying individuals described in paragraph (1), not later
than January 1, 2027, and annually thereafter—
“(A) the Secretary of State shall provide the Secretary
with a list of the individuals described in paragraph (1)(A),
as well as any other information necessary to identify such
individuals, and
“(B) the Attorney General, acting through the Hostage
Recovery Fusion Cell, shall provide the Secretary with a list
of the individuals described in paragraph (1)(B), as well as
any other information necessary to identify such individuals.
“(c) Special Rule for Overpayments.—
“(1) In general.—Subsection (a) shall not apply for
purposes of determining the amount of interest on any
overpayment of tax.
“(2) Special rules.—If an individual is entitled to the
benefits of subsection (a) with respect to any return and
such return is timely filed (determined after the application
of such subsection), subsections (b)(3) and (e) of section
6611 shall not apply.
“(d) Modification of Treasury Databases and Information
Systems.—The Secretary shall ensure that databases and
information systems of the Department of the Treasury are
updated as necessary to ensure that statute expiration dates,
interest and penalty accrual, and collection activities are
suspended consistent with the application of subsection (a).
“(e) Refund and Abatement of Penalties and Fines Imposed
Prior to Identification as Applicable Individual.—In the
case of any applicable individual—
“(1) for whom any interest, penalty, additional amount, or
addition to the tax in respect to any tax liability for any
taxable year ending during the period described in subsection
(a)(1) was assessed or collected, and
“(2) who was, subsequent to such assessment or collection,
determined to be an individual described in subparagraph (A)
or (B) of subsection (b)(1),
the Secretary shall abate any such assessment and refund any
amount collected to such applicable individual in the same
manner as any refund of an overpayment of tax under section
6402.”.
(b) Clerical Amendment.—The table of sections for chapter
77 of such Code is amended by inserting after the item
relating to section 7510 the following new item: “Sec. 7511. Time for performing certain acts postponed for hostages
and individuals wrongfully detained abroad.”.
(c) Effective Date.—The amendments made by this section
shall apply to taxable years ending after the date of the
enactment of this Act.
SEC. 3. REFUND AND ABATEMENT OF PENALTIES AND FINES PAID BY
ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUALS.
(a) In General.—Section 7511 of the Internal Revenue Code
of 1986, as added by section 2, is amended by adding at the
end the following new subsection:
“(f) Refund and Abatement of Penalties and Fines Paid by
Eligible Individuals With Respect to Periods Prior to Date of
Enactment of This Section.—
“(1) In general.—
“(A) Establishment.—Not later than January 1, 2027, the
Secretary (in consultation with the Secretary of State and
the Attorney General) shall establish a program to allow any
eligible individual (or the spouse or any dependent (as
defined in section 152) of such individual) to apply for a
refund or an abatement of any amount described in paragraph
(2) (including interest) to the extent such amount was
attributable to the applicable period.
“(B) Identification of individuals.—Not later than
January 1, 2027, the Secretary of State and the Attorney
General, acting through the Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell (as
described in section 304 of the Robert Levinson Hostage
Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act (22 U.S.C.
1741b)), shall—
“(i) compile a list, based on such information as is
available, of individuals who were eligible individuals
during the applicable period, and
“(ii) provide the list described in clause (i) to the
Secretary.
“(C) Notice.—For purposes of carrying out the program
described in subparagraph (A), the Secretary (in consultation
with the Secretary of State and the Attorney General) shall,
with respect to any individual identified under subparagraph
(B), provide notice to such individual—
“(i) in the case of an individual who has been released on
or before the date of the enactment of this subsection, not
later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this
subsection, or
“(ii) in the case of an individual who is released after
the date of the enactment of this subsection, not later than
90 days after the date on which such individual is released,
that such individual may be eligible for a refund or an
abatement of any amount described in paragraph (2) pursuant
to the program described in subparagraph (A).
“(D) Authorization.—
“(i) In general.—Subject to clause (ii), in the case of
any refund described in subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall
issue such refund to the eligible individual in the same
manner as any refund of an overpayment of tax.
“(ii) Extension of limitation on time for refund.—With
respect to any refund under subparagraph (A)—
“(I) the 3-year period of limitation prescribed by section
6511(a) shall be extended until the end of the 1-year period
beginning on the date that the notice described in
subparagraph (C) is provided to the eligible individual, and
“(II) any limitation under section 6511(b)(2) shall not
apply.
“(2) Eligible individual.—For purposes of this
subsection, the term `eligible individual' means any
applicable individual who, for any taxable year ending during
the applicable period, paid or incurred any interest,
penalty, additional amount, or addition to the tax in respect
to any tax liability for such year of such individual based
on a determination that an act described in section
7508(a)(1) was not performed by the time prescribed therefor
(without regard to any extensions).
“(3) Applicable period.—For purposes of this subsection,
the term `applicable period' means the period—
“(A) beginning on January 1, 2021, and
“(B) ending on the date of the enactment of this
subsection.”.
(b) Effective Date.—The amendment made by this section
shall apply to taxable years ending on or before the date of
the enactment of this Act.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Rulli). Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Smith) and the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Chu) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Missouri.
{time} 2030
General Leave
Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on this bill under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Missouri?
There was no objection.
Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 9496, the End Tax Penalties on American Hostages Act, introduced by Representative Tenney.
hostage or wrongfully detained abroad and is safely returned home could then face a penalty from the IRS for failure to pay taxes while in captivity. Yet, under current law, those Americans and their families could owe thousands of dollars in tax penalties and fines.
their will. Right now, the IRS has no authority to provide extended relief to these taxpayers or to lessen or eliminate interest payments on tax liabilities. This is not just unfair, it is absurd.
and Means Committee earlier this summer, and a previous version of Representative Tenney's bill was also approved by the House of Representatives last Congress.
This gap in our tax code deserves to be closed once and for all. I appreciate Representative Tenney's continued leadership on this issue and her commitment to American families who have endured unspeakable hardship and tragedy. I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. CHU. 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.
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.
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.
information systems are updated to permit proper tracking of deadlines and limitation periods applicable to individuals entitled to relief.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Tenney).
Ms. TENNEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the End Tax Penalties on American Hostages Act.
The objective of this bill is very straightforward. No American who has suffered wrongful detention or hostage-taking by our adversaries should return home to face penalties from the IRS.
will can be subject to late tax payment penalties after returning home from captivity. This defies common sense and is antithetical to what we stand for as Americans. This is an overlooked flaw in our tax code that can only worsen the trauma of individuals and families who have already faced extraordinary challenges if this is not addressed by Congress.
hostages, wrongful detainees, and their families from tax penalties incurred because of circumstances beyond their control. This bill was precipitated because of cases like my constituent Ryan Corbett, a husband and father from Dansville, New York, who was wrongfully detained by the Taliban for 875 days. Ryan was held in a 9-foot-by-9- foot basement cell without regular access to the bathroom, sunlight, or appropriate medical care. Ryan was in dire health by the time he returned to his wife, Anna, and his 3 children, Ketsia, Miriam, and Caleb in January 2025. While Ryan and his family have not been subjected to tax penalties from the IRS, the fact that it was a possibility under the circumstances is unacceptable.
correct that injustice, we must continue to fight to secure the release of Americans being illegally held abroad as Ryan was.
American Hostages Act to send a clear message that we stand by our fellow citizens who have endured unthinkable circumstances abroad.
Ms. CHU. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers. I am prepared to close.
experienced the unimaginable do not face additional challenges upon their return home. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to vote “yes” on this bill. I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time to close.
Ways and Means Committee this Congress so that we can once again pass it here in the House and send it to the Senate. We should not punish Americans for being held hostage.
families who have suffered at the hands of hostage-takers or hostile foreign governments is the right and decent thing to do.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Smith) that the House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 9496, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.