[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 797 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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115th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 797
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to make permanent the
Volunteer Income Tax Assistance matching grant program.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 30, 2017
Mr. Brown (for himself and Mr. Heller) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to make permanent the
Volunteer Income Tax Assistance matching grant program.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Volunteer Income Tax Assistance
Permanence Act of 2017''.
SEC. 2. RETURN PREPARATION PROGRAMS FOR LOW-INCOME TAXPAYERS.
(a) In General.--Chapter 77 is amended by inserting after section
7526 the following new section:
``SEC. 7526A. RETURN PREPARATION PROGRAMS FOR LOW-INCOME TAXPAYERS.
``(a) Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Matching Grant Program.--
``(1) Establishment of program.--The Secretary, through the
Internal Revenue Service, shall establish a Community Volunteer
Income Tax Assistance Matching Grant Program (hereinafter in
this section referred to as the `VITA grant program'). Except
as otherwise provided in this section, the VITA grant program
shall be administered in a manner which is substantially
similar to the Community Volunteer Income Tax Assistance
matching grants demonstration program established under title I
of division D of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008.
``(2) Matching grants.--
``(A) In general.--The Secretary may, subject to
the availability of appropriated funds, make available
grants under the VITA grant program to provide matching
funds for the development, expansion, or continuation
of qualified return preparation programs assisting low-
income taxpayers and members of underserved
populations.
``(B) Application.--
``(i) In general.--Subject to clause (ii),
in order to be eligible for a grant under this
section, a qualified return preparation program
shall submit an application to the Secretary at
such time, in such manner, and containing such
information as the Secretary may reasonably
require.
``(ii) Accuracy review.--In the case of any
qualified return preparation program which was
awarded a grant under this section and was
subsequently subject to a field site visit by
the Internal Revenue Service (including through
the Stakeholder Partnerships, Education, and
Communication office) in which it was
determined that the average accuracy rate for
preparation of tax returns through such program
was less than 90 percent, such program shall
not be eligible for any additional grants under
this section unless such program provides, as
part of their application, sufficient
documentation regarding the corrective measures
established by such program to address the
deficiencies identified following the field
site visit.
``(C) Priority.--In awarding grants under this
section, the Secretary shall give priority to
applications--
``(i) demonstrating assistance to low-
income taxpayers, with emphasis on outreach to
and services for such taxpayers,
``(ii) demonstrating taxpayer outreach and
educational activities relating to eligibility
and availability of income supports available
through the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, such
as the earned income tax credit, and
``(iii) demonstrating specific outreach and
focus on one or more underserved populations.
``(D) Duration of grants.--Upon application of a
qualified return preparation program, the Secretary is
authorized to award a multi-year grant not to exceed 3
years.
``(3) Aggregate limitation.--Unless otherwise provided by
specific appropriation, the Secretary shall not allocate more
than $30,000,000 per fiscal year (exclusive of costs of
administering the program) to carry out the purposes of this
section.
``(b) Use of Funds.--
``(1) In general.--Qualified return preparation programs
receiving a grant under this section may use the grant for--
``(A) ordinary and necessary costs associated with
program operation in accordance with Cost Principles
Circulars as set forth by the Office of Management and
Budget, including--
``(i) for wages or salaries of persons
coordinating the activities of the program,
``(ii) to develop training materials,
conduct training, and perform quality reviews
of the returns for which assistance has been
provided under the program, and
``(iii) for equipment purchases and
vehicle-related expenses associated with remote
or rural tax preparation services,
``(B) outreach and educational activities described
in subsection (a)(2)(C)(ii), and
``(C) services related to financial education and
capability, asset development, and the establishment of
savings accounts in connection with tax return
preparation.
``(2) Use of grants for overhead expenses prohibited.--No
grant made under this section may be used for overhead expenses
that are not directly related to any qualified return
preparation program.
``(c) Promotion and Referral.--
``(1) Promotion.--The Secretary shall promote the benefits
of, and encourage the use of, tax preparation through qualified
return preparation programs through the use of mass
communications, referrals, and other means.
``(2) Internal revenue service referrals.--The Secretary
may refer taxpayers to qualified return preparation programs
receiving funding under this section.
``(3) VITA grantee referral.--Qualified return preparation
programs receiving a grant under this section are encouraged to
refer, as appropriate, to local or regional Low Income Taxpayer
Clinics individuals who are eligible to receive services at
such clinics.
``(d) Definitions.--For purposes of this section--
``(1) Qualified return preparation program.--The term
`qualified return preparation program' means any program--
``(A) which provides assistance to individuals, not
less than 90 percent of whom are low-income taxpayers,
in preparing and filing Federal income tax returns,
``(B) which is administered by a qualified entity,
``(C) in which all of the volunteers who assist in
the preparation of Federal income tax returns meet the
training requirements prescribed by the Secretary, and
``(D) which uses a quality review process which
reviews 100 percent of all returns.
``(2) Qualified entity.--
``(A) In general.--The term `qualified entity'
means any entity which--
``(i) is an eligible organization (as
described in subparagraph (B)),
``(ii) is in compliance with Federal tax
filing and payment requirements,
``(iii) is not debarred or suspended from
Federal contracts, grants, or cooperative
agreements, and
``(iv) agrees to provide documentation to
substantiate any matching funds provided under
the VITA grant program.
``(B) Eligible organization.--
``(i) In general.--Subject to clause (ii),
the term `eligible organization' means--
``(I) an institution of higher
education which is described in section
102 (other than subsection (a)(1)(C)
thereof) of the Higher Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1088), as in effect on
the date of the enactment of this
section, and which has not been
disqualified from participating in a
program under title IV of such Act,
``(II) an organization described in
section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986 and exempt from tax under
section 501(a) of such Code,
``(III) a local government agency,
including--
``(aa) a county or
municipal government agency,
and
``(bb) an Indian tribe, as
defined in section 4(13) of the
Native American Housing
Assistance and Self-
Determination Act of 1996 (25
U.S.C. 4103(13)), including any
tribally designated housing
entity (as defined in section
4(22) of such Act (25 U.S.C.
4103(22))), tribal subsidiary,
subdivision, or other wholly
owned tribal entity, or
``(IV) a local, State, regional, or
national coalition (with one lead
organization which meets the
eligibility requirements of subclause
(I), (II), or (III) acting as the
applicant organization).
``(ii) Alternative eligible organization.--
If no eligible organization described in clause
(i) is available to assist the targeted
population or community, the term `eligible
organization' shall include--
``(I) a State government agency,
and
``(II) a Cooperative Extension
Service office.
``(3) Low-income taxpayers.--The term `low-income taxpayer'
means a taxpayer who has income for the taxable year which does
not exceed an amount equal to the completed phaseout amount
under section 32(b) for a married couple filing a joint return
with three or more qualifying children, as determined in a
revenue procedure or other published guidance.
``(4) Underserved population.--The term `underserved
population' includes populations of persons with disabilities,
persons with limited English proficiency, Native Americans,
individuals living in rural areas, members of the Armed Forces
and their spouses, and the elderly.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for chapter 77 is
amended by inserting after the item relating to section 7526 the
following new item:
``7526A. Return preparation programs for low-income taxpayers.''.
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