House Approves Filing Relief for Natural Disasters Act Co-Authored by Pasadena Congresswoman

The House of Representatives unanimously passed legislation Monday co-authored by Pasadena Congresswoman Judy Chu that would authorize the Internal Revenue Service to postpone tax filing deadlines for victims of state-declared natural disasters without waiting for federal declarations.

The Filing Relief for Natural Disasters Act (H.R. 517), introduced by Reps. Chu and David Kustoff, R-Tenn., cleared the chamber in a 388-0 vote.

Currently, the Internal Revenue Service can only extend filing deadlines after presidentially-declared federal disasters, creating potential hardships for taxpayers affected by emergencies that receive only state-level declarations.

“While President Biden immediately declared a federal disaster for the Los Angeles fires that devastated my district in January, that was unusually fast,” said Rep. Chu. “That means that if disaster strikes during filing season, taxpayers run the risk of missing federal filing deadlines through no fault of their own. And, there may be serious natural disasters that affect taxpayers’ ability to file, but don’t ever get declared as a federal disaster.”

Chu pointed to California’s frequent state-level emergency declarations for wildfires, floods and earthquakes as examples where affected residents currently face delays in receiving federal tax relief until presidential declarations are issued.

“Our bill solves these problems by giving Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service authority to postpone federal filing deadlines in response to a request by a governor that has declared a state-level disaster,” Chu said. The legislation would also double the minimum duration of filing extensions from 60 to 120 days.

She referenced the 2020 wildfires, including the Bobcat Fire in the San Gabriel Mountains, as instances where presidential declarations took “days or even weeks” while taxpayers potentially faced separate deadlines for state and federal returns.

The bill would ensure victims can receive instantaneous federal filing relief as soon as a governor declares a state-level emergency, allowing taxpayers to focus on recovery rather than tax deadlines.

The congresswoman also called for passage of “a supplemental disaster appropriations package with no strings attached” to support victims of January’s Los Angeles Fires, including the Eaton Fire in her District.

The bill now moves to the Senate for consideration.