To amend the Internal Revenue Code to exclude certain damages from gross income.
Legislative Progress
IntroducedMr. Van Drew introduced the following bill; which was referred …
Summary
What This Bill Does
The Lejeune Untaxed Compensation and Settlements Act makes damages received from lawsuits under the Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022 tax-free. Veterans, service members, and their families who were exposed to contaminated drinking water at Camp Lejeune and received settlements or court awards would not have to pay federal income tax on those payments.
Who Benefits and How
Veterans and families who were harmed by toxic water contamination at Camp Lejeune receive significant tax relief. If someone receives a $100,000 settlement for health problems caused by the contamination, they would keep the entire amount instead of paying $20,000-$30,000 in federal taxes. This particularly helps those facing major medical expenses from cancers and other illnesses linked to the contamination.
Who Bears the Burden and How
The federal government bears the cost through reduced tax revenue from these settlements and awards. The IRS will collect less income tax from Camp Lejeune victims who receive compensation. Taxpayers indirectly bear this cost as the federal budget absorbs the revenue loss from these tax exemptions.
Key Provisions
- Adds Camp Lejeune Justice Act damages to the list of excludable income under Internal Revenue Code Section 104(a)
- Applies to all damages received after the bill becomes law, including pending settlements
- Covers both jury awards and out-of-court settlements from Camp Lejeune contamination lawsuits
- Eliminates federal income tax liability on these specific damages payments
- Does not affect other forms of compensation or benefits that may be taxable
Evidence Chain:
This summary is derived from the structured analysis below. See "Detailed Analysis" for per-title beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
Primary Purpose
Excludes damages received under the Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022 from federal income taxation
Policy Domains
Legislative Strategy
"Provide tax relief to victims of Camp Lejeune water contamination who receive settlements or awards"
Likely Beneficiaries
- Camp Lejeune contamination victims
- Veterans exposed to contaminated water
- Families of affected service members
Likely Burden Bearers
- Federal Treasury (reduced tax revenue)
- IRS (administrative implementation)
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
Damages received in an action brought pursuant to the Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022
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