To provide tax relief for damages relating to Hurricanes Helene and Milton.
Analysis under review: This bill has generated analysis that may be too generic or incomplete. Clause-level evidence remains available below.
Summary
What This Bill Does
This bill provides tax relief for victims of Hurricanes Helene and Milton, which struck during September-November 2024. It allows affected individuals to use favorable tax rules to reduce their tax burden and access their retirement savings without penalty.
Who Benefits and How
Individuals in hurricane disaster areas benefit significantly. Those with reduced income can use their higher prior-year earnings to calculate the Earned Income Tax Credit, potentially receiving larger refunds. Donors to hurricane relief charities can deduct more of their contributions from their taxes. Hurricane victims can withdraw up to $100,000 from retirement accounts without the usual 10% early withdrawal penalty, and can spread the income over 3 years.
Who Bears the Burden and How
The federal government bears the cost through reduced tax revenue from the expanded deductions and credits. There are no new burdens on private entities. Charitable organizations must provide contemporaneous written acknowledgment that donations are used for hurricane relief.
Key Provisions
- Earned Income Credit can be calculated using prior year income if current income is lower
- Enhanced charitable contribution deduction limits for hurricane relief donations
- Penalty-free retirement account withdrawals up to $100,000 with 3-year repayment option
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Provides tax relief and retirement fund flexibility to individuals affected by Hurricanes Helene and Milton in 2024.
Key Policy Areas
Tax Policy, Disaster Relief, Retirement
Primary Purpose
Provides tax relief and retirement fund flexibility to individuals affected by Hurricanes Helene and Milton in 2024.
Policy Domains
Hurricane Helene and Milton Tax Relief Act of 2025
Identified Gains
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Hurricane victims in disaster areas
- Low-to-moderate income taxpayers
- Charitable donors
- Retirement account holders
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Identified Costs
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation- Federal government (reduced tax revenue)
- IRS (implementation)
Contextual inference, no direct clause citation
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
IntroducedMr. Buchanan introduced the following bill; which was referred to …
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
Hurricane victims with retirement accounts, Individual taxpayers who donate to hurricane relief, Low and moderate income workers in hurricane disaster areas
Corporate taxpayers who donate to hurricane relief
Charitable organizations providing hurricane relief
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "the_code"
- → Internal Revenue Code of 1986
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of the Treasury
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
An individual whose principal place of abode at any time during the incident period is located in the qualified hurricane disaster area and who has sustained an economic loss by reason of Hurricane Helene or Hurricane Milton.
An area with respect to which a major disaster has been declared by the President under section 401 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act by reason of Hurricane Helene or Hurricane Milton.
The period beginning on September 28, 2024, and ending on November 2, 2024.
A charitable contribution paid in cash to a 501(c)(3) organization for relief efforts in a qualified hurricane disaster area, with written acknowledgment that it was used for hurricane relief.
A distribution from an eligible retirement plan made during the incident period through December 31, 2025, to an eligible individual, up to $100,000.
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology