Tax Fairness for Workers Act reaches 198 co-sponsors

Just ahead of Labor Day, six members of Congress expressed support for the Tax Fairness for Workers Act, which would reinstate the per diem tax deduction for employee truck drivers.

On Aug. 30, Reps. Robert Garcia, D-Calif.; Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif.; Ed Case, D-Hawaii; Doris Matsui, D-Calif.; Nydia Velazquez, D-N.Y.; and William Keating, D-Mass., became co-sponsors of HR4963. In addition, Reps. Sara Jacobs, D-Calif.; Delia Ramirez, D-Ill.; and Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., expressed support earlier in August.

Those signatures bring the total number of co-sponsors to 198. The bipartisan bill has 190 Democrats and eight Republicans on board. As there are a total of 435 representatives in the House, the Tax Fairness for Workers Act is inching toward a majority.

Rep. Brendan Boyle, D-Pa., introduced the bill in the House on July 27, 2023. The bipartisan effort aims to ease the tax burden on workers by allowing them to deduct common employment expenses, such as travel and uniform costs.

The Senate version was introduced by Robert Casey, D-Pa., and has 40 co-sponsors.

The Tax Fairness for Workers Act would allow a deduction from gross income for expenses incurred by an employee if those expenses are necessary to do the job.

For truck drivers, the bill would reinstate the ability for employee truck drivers to utilize a per diem tax deduction. Per diem is the daily allowance truckers receive to cover expenses, such as meals, when they are away from home.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 eliminated that deduction for company drivers, while self-employed truckers can still claim per diem. The Tax Fairness for Workers Act would make it to where employee drivers could also utilize the credit.

“These extraneous costs present a challenge to many hardworking individuals who rely on these deductions to offset expenses and pay household bills,” Rep. Boyle said in a news release. “This legislation will reintroduce those deductions that were taken away several years ago and will ease some of the tax burden pressure currently faced by many middle-class families.”

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, which represents small-business truckers, supports the bill. LL