Tax breaks for U.S. troops
By Staff
March 25, 2003
The U.S. House has passed the Armed Services Tax Fairness Act, which U.S. Rep. Gene Taylor, D-Miss., says will provide $835 million in tax relief for U.S. armed services personnel, including members of National Guard and Reserve units called to foreign duty stations in the war against Iraq.
Of course, there is nothing fair about giving one select group a tax advantage over all others, but in the case of active duty military personnel, we agree that such legislation could be helpful as a reward for dedicated service in dangerous times.
The legislation would extend the filing deadline and offer an exemption from taxes for death payments to survivors. Uniformed troops could take a tax deduction up to $1,500 for travel to and from Guard or Reserve training that is more than 100 miles from home. The bill also suspends the requirement that uniformed military members must have owned and used a home as a principal residence for a least two of five years to avoid capital gains taxes.
Taylor believes the bill would save military families $85 million in taxes in 2003 and $835 million over the next 10 years. Clearly, there are budget consequences a "savings" for military families is a "cost" to the federal budget and money may have to be made up somewhere down the line.
We hope and pray that the war in Iraq ends well before then. But, for now, this new tax bill is a good expression of support for men and women serving in harm's way.
