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From the Office of Congressman Greg Murphy

Washington, D.C. — Congressman Greg Murphy, M.D. introduced the Disaster Tax Lookback Parity Act April 15. This legislation would extend the amount of time disaster victims would have to claim a tax refund or credit.

“Eastern North Carolinians know all too well the impact a natural disaster can have on families,” Murphy said. “This commonsense legislation gives victims of natural disasters additional time to claim a refund, providing relief to those who must deal with the stress and calamity that comes with a hurricane. I’m grateful for Rep. Jimmy Panetta for co-leading this bipartisan legislation which will positively impact so many.”

“Taxpayers requesting an extension are afforded extra time to claim tax credits and refunds, but that same policy does not apply to taxpayers whose filing date was postponed due to a natural disaster,” said Congressman Jimmy Panetta. “Our straightforward, bipartisan legislation would create parity and allow families and small businesses rebuilding after a natural disaster additional time to claim this assistance. The Disaster Tax Lookback Parity Act is critical to providing fairness and relief for California’s 19th Congressional District and other communities throughout our country that are recovering from recent severe weather.”

“When a tax filing deadline is postponed due to a disaster, it is equitable that the period for claiming refunds and credits be extended by the same amount of time,” said Peter Mills, Senior Manager, AICPA Tax Policy & Advocacy. “We are pleased that the Disaster Tax Lookback Parity Act of 2024 would provide taxpayers impacted by disasters with this benefit. We thank Rep. Murphy and Rep. Panetta for their work on this bipartisan bill, and we look forward to helping them advance this commonsense legislation to help taxpayers.”

Background

Under current law, taxpayers who request an extension on filing their taxes are afforded additional time to claim a tax credit or refund. However, this additional time is not extended for those who file their taxes due to a postponed filing date. This legislation creates parity for the lookback period, so victims of natural disasters have additional time to claim a refund, just like the additional time given to those request a filing extension. Addressing this issue was listed as one of the top legislative recommendations by the National Taxpayer Advocate.