Bill > S2129

This bill proposes significant changes to how the Internal Revenue Code handles tax filing for survivors of domestic abuse or spousal abandonment. Specifically, the bill allows individuals who are living apart from their spouse and have experienced domestic abuse or spousal abandonment to elect to be treated as unmarried when filing their taxes, provided they indicate this status on their tax return and meet certain criteria. The bill broadly defines domestic abuse to include physical, psychological, sexual, emotional, and economic abuse, and considers abuse of a survivor's child or family member as potential grounds. Spousal abandonment is defined as being unable to locate a spouse after reasonable diligence. The election to be treated as unmarried is valid only for the specific tax year in which it is made, and importantly, this election does not affect the spouse's marital status for tax purposes. The bill also updates tax return preparer due diligence requirements to include verifying an individual's eligibility to make this election. These amendments would apply to taxable years ending after the date of the bill's enactment, providing a new legal pathway for survivors to file taxes independently and potentially more safely.

Budget and Finance

https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/2129/all-info