Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Tax Act of 2008

Floor Speech

HEROES EARNINGS ASSISTANCE AND RELIEF TAX ACT OF 2008 -- (Senate - May 22, 2008)

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Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, the Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Tax Act of 2008, the HEART Act, which passed the Senate by unanimous consent today, was a bipartisan effort that incorporates most of the provisions in the Defenders of Freedom Tax Relief Act of 2007, which passed the Senate last December. The HEART Act also makes permanent and expands upon some of the tax relief measures that I coauthored with Senator Baucus in 2003, while chairman of the Senate Finance Committee.

Our men and women who serve in the military make tremendous sacrifices to keep this great Nation safe and strong. Oftentimes, this very service makes taxes complicated and sometimes unfair. It is only right that these honorable men and women get treated fairly under the Federal Tax Code. The Federal Tax Code shouldn't penalize people for serving their country.

It has been a few years since Congress enacted a tax relief measure for the military. As such, we have updated the relief package to include some additional relief. Amongst some of these new measures is a clarification that members of the military who file a joint tax return would be eligible for the stimulus rebate payment even if one spouse does not have a Social Security number.

The bill also ensures that U.S. employers of Americans working abroad pursuant to a Government contract pay Social Security and Medicare taxes, regardless of whether they operate through a foreign subsidiary. Amongst the offsets in the HEART Act is a provision that ensures individuals who relinquish their U.S. citizenship or long-term residency pay the same Federal taxes for the appreciation of assets as they would have paid if they sold them prior to relinquishing their U.S. citizenship or terminating their long-term residency.

It is unfortunate that the Senate was not able to strike an agreement with the House to include a provision that Senator Roberts championed. This provision would make more service members eligible for low-income housing.

However, Senator Roberts has been reassured by House, Ways and Means Democrats that this provision will be processed with the House's low-income housing credit reform measures, which was part of their housing bill.

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