Several Florida Republican lawmakers are calling on President Joe Biden to provide to provide tax relief to residents of Florida and Puerto Rico who were rocked by hurricane last year.
GOP Sen. Rick Scott said in a recent statement that fellow Republican Sen. Marco Rubio and Florida Reps. Byron Donalds, Scott Franklin, Bill Posey, Anna Paulina-Luna, Mario Díaz-Balart, and Peurto Rican Rep. Jenniffer González-Colón sent Biden a letter to urge his support for their Hurricane Tax Relief Act.
The bill introduced by Scott would provide disaster-loss tax relief to families hit by Hurricanes Ian, Nicole and Fiona in 51 Florida counties and Puerto Rico.
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Scott’s office noted that the bill would modify the deduction for personal casualty losses in the hurricane-disaster areas, waive requirements for affected taxpayers to itemize deductions, and have losses that exceed 10% of adjusted gross income.
Congress had previously provided such tax relief for Hurricanes Irma, Wilma, Dorian, and Michael.
In their letter, the lawmakers added that after Ian rocked parts of Southwest Florida, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Small Business Administration and “countless” other organizations “have worked incredibly hard to recover over the past six months, but there’s so much more work to do.”
“As families in Florida and Puerto Rico keep working to fully rebuild their lives, homes and communities, Congress must take the same important action it has after previous storms to provide tax relief for families in impacted areas. The last thing families should have to worry about as they recover from devastating storms like Ian, Nicole and Fiona is a big tax bill,” the letter continued.
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Calling attention to the provisions of the bill, the lawmakers noted past tax-relief efforts following major hurricanes were adopted “in a bipartisan manner” and “with overwhelming support.” Congress must do the same now for victims of Ian, Nicole, and Fiona.
“This can and should be done as soon as possible and without controversy, as it has been done many times before,” they wrote to Biden. “We strongly urge you to issue a statement in support of this legislation. This critical bill will provide relief to the hardworking families who have been impacted by these devastating storms.”
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