The White House is using all necessary measures to help the U.S. overcome coronavirus.
Now Americans may be getting a break — a tax break.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the U.S. Treasury is likely to extend the April 15 tax deadline, part of President Donald Trump’s economic plan to curb the economic costs of coronavirus — and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are rallying around the decision.
The move is coming as more than 1,000 citizens have been infected by the virus, which originated from Wuhan, China.
The newspaper indicated that the length of the extension still remains unclear, as uncertainty about who exactly qualifies for the extension swirls around the idea.
And according to The New York Post, many Democrats seem open to the move.
Liberal lawmakers on the House Ways and Means Committee have reached out to Internal Revenue Service officials in hopes of evaluating whether or not the deadline should be extended.
The committee, which comprises of prominent congresspeople such as Reps. John Lewis, D-G.A. and Devin Nunes, R-Calif., wrote a letter to IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig expressing Americans’ need for relief amid the outbreak.
” … we are concerned about the ability of the IRS to provide taxpayer assistance and process returns, as well as the ability of the taxpayers, free tax preparation sites, and tax professionals to meet the filing deadline. Under the Internal Revenue Code, the IRS has authority to extend the time for filing any return for six months or less and the authority to waive certain penalties upon a showing of reasonable cause.”
“We are hopeful that the IRS will consider the need for relief from certain filing and payment penalties for taxpayers and communities impacted by COVID-19,” the lawmakers noted.
The Post wrote that the Treasury Department’s decision is not yet final.
The Horn editorial team