H.R. 9496 · 119th Congress

End Tax Penalties on American Hostages Act

Introduced on Jun 29, 2026 by Claudia Tenney (R-NY-24). 2 cosponsors, 2 of them from another party. Latest action (Sep 30, 2026): Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent. (consideration: CR S5238-5239)

Stage
Passed both chambers
Introduced
Jun 29, 2026
Cosponsors
2
2 from the other party
Policy area
Taxation
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Progress

The furthest stage the measure reached. Simple and concurrent resolutions do not go to the President.

  1. Introduced
  2. Reported by committee
  3. Passed one chamber
  4. Passed both chambers
  5. 5Sent to the President
  6. 6Became law

Official title

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to postpone tax deadlines and reimburse paid late fees for United States nationals who are unlawfully or wrongfully detained or held hostage abroad, and for other purposes.

Subjects

  • Administrative remedies
  • Computers and information technology
  • Detention of persons
  • Diplomacy, foreign officials, Americans abroad
  • Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
  • Tax administration and collection, taxpayers
  • Tax-exempt organizations
  • Terrorism

Summary

By the Congressional Research Service (Reported to House, Sep 8, 2026). Public domain.

End Tax Penalties on American Hostages Act

This bill extends certain federal tax deadlines for U.S. nationals who are unlawfully or wrongfully detained abroad or held hostage abroad and their spouses. The bill also allows for an abatement and refund of additional taxes, interest, and penalties assessed to such individuals for failing to meet a federal tax deadline during a period of detention.

Specifically, under the bill, the time period during which a U.S. national is unlawfully or wrongfully detained abroad or held hostage abroad is disregarded in determining certain federal tax deadlines, including deadlines for

  • filing a return for and paying federal income, estate, gift, employment, or excise taxes;
  • a tax credit or refund claim; and
  • the determination, assessment, and collection of additional taxes, interest, or penalties.

The bill requires the Department of State and the Department of Justice to annually provide the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) with lists to identify U.S. nationals who qualify for an extension.

The bill also requires the IRS to (1) abate and refund additional taxes, interest, and penalties assessed for any tax year ending during a period of detention for which an extension of a federal tax deadline is permitted; and (2) establish a program allowing U.S. nationals unlawfully or wrongfully detained abroad or taken hostage abroad (or their spouse or dependent) to claim a refund of additional taxes, interest, and penalties assessed for any tax year ending during a period of detention from 2021 to the bill’s enactment date.

Sponsor and cosponsors

Cosponsors by party as of the day they signed on. Original cosponsors signed on the day of introduction.

Claudia TenneyR-NY-24Sponsor

Democrats · 2

Roll calls

Recorded votes on the measure. Most measures move by voice vote or unanimous consent, which record no individual positions.

No recorded roll call on this measure: it moved by voice vote or unanimous consent, or has not reached the floor.

History

Every action as published, oldest first. Roll calls link to how each member voted.

  1. Jun 29, 2026Introduced in House
  2. Jun 29, 2026Introduced in House
  3. Jun 29, 2026 · HouseReferred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.
  4. Jul 1, 2026 · HouseCommittee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held
  5. Jul 1, 2026 · HouseOrdered to be Reported in the Nature of a Substitute by the Yeas and Nays: 40 - 0.
  6. Sep 8, 2026Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Ways and Means. H. Rept. 119-797.
  7. Sep 8, 2026 · HouseReported (Amended) by the Committee on Ways and Means. H. Rept. 119-797.
  8. Sep 8, 2026 · HousePlaced on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 697.
  9. Sep 15, 2026 · HouseMr. Smith (MO) moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended.
  10. Sep 15, 2026 · HouseConsidered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H5683-5685)
  11. Sep 15, 2026 · HouseDEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 9496.
  12. Sep 15, 2026Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote.
  13. Sep 15, 2026 · HouseOn motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H5683-5684)
  14. Sep 15, 2026 · HouseMotion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
  15. Sep 16, 2026 · SenateReceived in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
  16. Sep 30, 2026Senate Committee on Finance discharged by Unanimous Consent.
  17. Sep 30, 2026 · SenateSenate Committee on Finance discharged by Unanimous Consent.
  18. Sep 30, 2026Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent.
  19. Sep 30, 2026 · SenatePassed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent. (consideration: CR S5238-5239)

Committees

Committees and subcommittees the measure was referred to.

Agencies in its committees' jurisdiction

Analisa's mapping of committee jurisdiction to federal agencies; the bill may touch others, or none of these.

Who lobbied on it

Organizations whose lobbying reports (LD-2) name this measure. Spending is what they reported for those quarters on all issues, not on this measure alone.

  1. American Bankers Association1 report
    Federal contractor: AMERICAN BANKERS ASSOCIATIONAI match · 100%
  2. Clearview AI1 report
    $30K reported (all issues)Federal contractor: CLEARVIEW AI, INC.$4.3M in contracts, FY2026AI match · 99%

Reports filed in 2026.

Sources and method

Every figure on this page traces to these records.

  • Bill status: bills and resolutions, sponsors, actions, subjects and CRS summaries (U.S. Government Publishing Office (GovInfo), from Congress.gov (Library of Congress))GovInfo Bill Status bulk data (Congress.gov; summaries by the Congressional Research Service) · data current to Oct 8, 2026 · loaded Oct 8, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Members of Congress, their terms, committees and identifiers (The @unitedstates project (from the Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress, the House and the Senate))unitedstates/congress-legislators: legislators, committees and current committee membership · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: CC0 1.0 (public domain dedication)
  • House roll-call votes (Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives)Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives, roll-call vote records · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Senate roll-call votes and DW-NOMINATE scores (Voteview (UCLA Department of Political Science))Lewis, Jeffrey B., Keith Poole, Howard Rosenthal, Adam Boche, Aaron Rudkin, and Luke Sonnet (2026). Voteview: Congressional Roll-Call Votes Database. https://voteview.com/ · data current to Oct 3, 2026 · loaded Oct 3, 2026 · license: Free to use with the required citation
  • Lobbying disclosures (LD-1 registrations, LD-2 quarterly reports, LD-203 contribution reports) (Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives)Clerk of the House, Lobbying Disclosure Act filings (organizations only; lobbyists' names are not loaded) · data current to Oct 7, 2026 · loaded Oct 7, 2026 · license: Public domain (U.S. Government work, 17 U.S.C. § 105)
  • Positions are shown only where a roll call recorded them; voice votes and unanimous consent record none.
  • Money and votes are shown side by side; neither explains the other.