Sponsors (6)
The bill boosts after-tax pay and simplifies tax rules for Olympic and Paralympic athletes, at the cost of some federal revenue and by creating a targeted tax preference that may be seen as unequal.
Olympic and Paralympic athletes will keep the value of medals and prize money tax-free for awards received after Dec 31, 2025, increasing their after-tax earnings.
Olympic and Paralympic award recipients and tax preparers will face simpler tax treatment because the bill removes a complex income limitation, reducing paperwork and compliance uncertainty.
Potential and current elite athletes (and their families) will face higher net rewards for winning medals or prize money, which may encourage participation and reduce financial disincentives to compete at the highest levels.
The federal government will collect less income tax revenue because award values that were previously taxable are now excluded, potentially increasing budgetary pressure.
Taxpayers and middle-class families may perceive the bill as creating a special tax preference for elite athletes, raising fairness concerns compared with other award recipients who remain taxable.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Removes the income limit so Olympic/Paralympic medals and USOC prize money are excluded from gross income regardless of recipient income, for awards after Dec 31, 2025.
Official title: To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to remove the income limitation on the exclusion from gross income of any medal or prize money won in competition in the Olympic Games or Paralympic Games.
Introduced February 26, 2026 by Michelle Fischbach · Last progress February 26, 2026
Removes the current income cap so that the value of any Olympic or Paralympic medal and prize money awarded by the United States Olympic Committee is excluded from recipients' gross income regardless of their other income. The exclusion applies to prizes and awards received after December 31, 2025.