Middle Class Tax Relief Package Passes House

From Rep. Chris Van Hollen's office:

Congressman Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) today hailed the House passage of H.R. 3996, the Temporary Tax Relief Act of 2007. The legislation, which passed on a vote of 216 to 193, protects 23 million middle-class families from being hit by the Alternative Minimum Tax and includes a series of other provisions that provide tax relief to working families.

“Whatever its original intent, the AMT is today a poster child of tax policy gone awry,” said Congressman Chris Van Hollen (D-MD). “As we work towards comprehensive tax reform — including full repeal of the AMT — it is imperative that we act promptly to keep this tax tsunami from crashing down on 23 million unsuspecting American taxpayers. Moreover, with the national debt now exceeding $9 trillion, I am pleased that we are moving forward with this AMT patch in a fiscally responsible manner so that future generations will not have to spend their lives paying for the choices we make today.” The bill:

Provides 30 million homeowners with property tax relief
Helps 12 million children by expanding the child tax credit
Benefits 11 million families through the State and local sales tax deduction
Helps 4.5 million families better afford college with the tuition deduction
Saves 3.4 million teachers money with a deduction for classroom expenses
Provides thousands of American troops in combat with tax relief under the Earned Income Tax Credit.

The Temporary Tax Relief Act included two bipartisan amendments introduced by Congressman Van Hollen. The first Van Hollen Amendment – patterned after the AMT Credit Fairness and Relief Act (HR 3861) - would eliminate the injustice imposed upon hardworking Americans caused by the unintended and unanticipated effects of the AMT as it relates to Incentive Stock Options. As a result of this unfair provision many Americans are currently forced to pay taxes on phantom income – income they never received. The second Van Hollen amendment would repeal the IRS’s authority to enter into contracts with private companies to collect federal income taxes.