The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Tax Relief for American Families and Works Act on January 31, 2024. Since then, the bill has stalled in the Senate. Congress left Washington on Friday, March 22nd, for a two-week recess, so there is now little or no chance for any legislative changes prior to the April 15th tax filing deadline.

The legislation would have expanded the child tax credit, provided disaster relief, and retroactively restored a number of business tax breaks, including expensing of research expenditures, bonus depreciation, and higher interest expense deductions. The bill would have established a January 31, 2024 deadline for employee retention credit (ERC) claims, and increased penalties on promoters of fraudulent ERC claims.

While it is still possible that Congress could pass the legislation upon their return to Washington, the likelihood of passage decreases each week as we get closer to Election Day. Our recommendation is to approach the April 15th deadline under the current laws and assume no retroactive legislation.

Please reach out to us to discuss your specific situation further.