What They Are Saying: Ways and Means Legislation Provides Key Supports for Survivors of Sexual Assault and Natural Disasters, Early-Childhood Educators, & Taxpayers

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Vulnerable Americans, educators, and those looking for better customer service from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will receive relief under legislation approved by the Ways and Means Committee. At a recent markup, Committee members approved five pieces of legislation with strong bipartisan support - commonsense policies that end the unfair tax treatment of sexual assault survivors, help victims of natural disasters keep more resources to rebuild their lives, support early-childhood educators with targeted tax relief, update the IRS Whistleblower Program to better combat fraud, and modernize taxpayer interactions with that agency. These included the Survivor Justice Tax Prevention Act (H.R. 2347), Doug LaMalfa Federal Disaster Tax Relief Certainty Act (H.R. 5366), Supporting Early-Childhood Educators' Deductions Act (SEED Act) (H.R. 5334), Taxpayer Experience Improvement Act (H.R.7971), and the IRS Whistleblower Program Improvement Act (H.R.7959).

Organizations and entities that champion the interests of survivors of sexual assault, those recovering from natural disasters, America's educators, and taxpayers are expressing their strong support for these policies.

Survivor Justice Tax Prevention Act (H.R. 2347)

Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA)

"This commonsense piece of legislation would ensure that legal damages awarded on account of physical sexual harm are exempt from income taxation, by narrowing the broad and vague 'observable harm standard' currently enforced by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). This legislation would not only rein in unaccountable bureaucrats but also deliver justice to the victims of terrible crimes." - Ross Marchand, Executive Director, TPA

Victim Rights Law Center (VRLC)

"This bill affirms that the harm a survivor endured is no less real simply because it may not leave a visible injury. We applaud the effort to close the gap in the tax code and to give sexual assault survivors the clarity and peace of mind they need to heal and move forward." - Amanda Walsh, Deputy Director of External Affairs, VRLC

Futures Without Violence

"Futures Without Violence is pleased to endorse your legislation and appreciates your ongoing commitment to helping survivors of sexual assault." - Kiersten Stewart, Vice President Public Policy and Advocacy, Futures Without Violence

Independent Women's Voice

"Independent Women's Voice applauds the Survivor Justice Tax Prevention Act. This legislation corrects a longstanding inequity in the tax code by ensuring that survivors of sexual acts or sexual contact are not taxed on damages intended to compensate for profound personal harm." - Carrie Lukas, Executive Vice President, Independent Women's Voice

YWCA USA

"YWCA USA strongly supports the Survivor Justice Tax Prevention Act (H.R.2347) and appreciates your leadership on this issue. On behalf of the thousands of courageous survivors of violence that YWCA Local Associations support each year…ensure it comes to a vote on the House floor." - Margaret Mitchell, CEO, YWCA USA

The Athlete Survivors' Assist ("The Assist")

"On behalf of The Athlete Survivors' Assist, or The Assist, an athlete survivor-led organization working to prevent abuse and strengthen systems of accountability within sports, I write to express our strong support for H.R. 2347, the Survivor Justice Tax Prevention Act, and to thank you for your leadership in advancing this important legislation before the Committee." - Julie Ann Rivers-Cochran, MSW, Executive Director, The Athlete Survivors' Assist ("The Assist")

American Association of Settlement Consultants (AASC)

"On behalf of the American Association of Settlement Consultants (AASC) and our settlement consultants across the country, we write to express our sincere appreciation for your scheduling a Committee markup of the bipartisan 'Survivor Justice Tax Prevention Act' (H.R. 2347), introduced by Reps. Lloyd Smucker (R-PA) and Gwen Moore (D-WI), and to highlight our strong support for this critical proposal." - Brian J. Schachter, Esq, President, AASC

Legal Momentum

"Legal Momentum, The Women's Legal Defense and Education Fund, strongly endorses the Survivor Justice Tax Prevention Act, because no survivor of sexual abuse should face a second injustice from the tax code after enduring profound trauma. It is unacceptable that survivors are taxed on settlement awards, funds intended to acknowledge harm and support recovery. The Survivor Justice Tax Prevention Act is a common-sense reform that would help ensure healing does not come with a financial penalty. By ensuring that settlement awards are not taxed, this legislation affirms that our systems support, not further harm, the brave survivors who come forward." - Azaleea Carlea, Legal Director, Legal Momentum

Doug LaMalfa Federal Disaster Tax Relief Certainty Act (H.R. 5366)

National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)

"This important legislation provides timely and necessary relief to individuals, families, and businesses recovering from disasters, while also creating opportunities to strengthen resilience against future events." - Sarah Dodge, Director of Government Affairs, National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)

After the Fire

"On behalf of After the Fire USA, the leading national nonprofit advocating for wildfire survivors and working directly in megafire-impacted communities across the country, I write to express our strong support for H.R. 5366, the Doug LaMalfa Federal Disaster Tax Relief Certainty Act." - Jennifer Gray Thompson, MPA, Founder & CEO, After the Fire

Bipartisan Policy Center Action (BPC Action)

"By allowing disaster-impacted households to claim disaster losses on their taxes without itemizing deductions, and by exempting wildfire relief payments from federal income tax, the bill would provide much-needed relief and certainty to disaster survivors working tirelessly to rebuild their homes, communities, and lives." - Michele Stockwell, President, BPC Action

County of Maui

"Mahalo for your leadership and for your continued commitment to the people of this country, especially those navigating the long and difficult road to recovery after disaster. This bill reflects what is possible when we come together across party lines to serve the needs of the American people." - Richard T. Bissen, Jr., Mayor, County of Maui

Fire Safe Communities

"H.R. 5366 is a necessary fix. It recognizes the reality that disaster recovery does not happen on a fixed timeline. It ensures that wildfire compensation is treated for what it is: recovery, not income. And it prevents survivors from being pushed further behind at the very moment they are trying to rebuild." - Ralph Bloemers, Director, Fire Safe Communities

Santiam Canyon Long Term Recovery Group

"I am writing to express my support for H.R. 5366 and to share the perspective of wildfire survivors and advocates from rural Oregon, particularly in the Santiam Canyon. As you are aware, rural communities face fundamentally different recovery conditions than suburban or urban areas. Access to resources, financial, institutional, and logistical, is significantly more limited. In Santiam Canyon, households span a wide range of incomes and capacities, but what they share is a prolonged and deeply uneven path to recovery following the 2020 Labor Day fires. These communities are still on the path to recovery." - Deana Freres, President, Santiam Canyon Long Term Recovery Group

Eaton Fire Collaborative

"On behalf of the Eaton Fire Collaborative Long-Term Recovery Group Executive Team, we write to express our strong support for H.R. 5366, the Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2025. Our Long-Term Recovery Group represents a coordinated network of organizations working directly with survivors of the Eaton Fire in Los Angeles County. We are actively supporting thousands of individuals and families as they navigate the long, complex path to recovery." - Eaton Fire Collaborative

Marshall Together

"On behalf of Marshall Together, a grassroots organization formed by survivors of the Marshall Fire, we write to express our strong support for H.R. 5366, the Doug LaMalfa Federal Disaster Tax Relief Certainty Act." - Reina Pomeroy, President, Marshall Together

Florida Citrus Mutual

"I am writing on behalf of Florida Citrus Mutual's nearly 1,500 grower members to express our strong support for H.R. 5366, which provides much-needed tax relief for Florida's citrus growers and others impacted by disaster events." - Mathew Joyner, Executive Vice President/CEO, Florida Citrus Mutual

Supporting Early-Childhood Educators' Deductions Act (SEED Act) (H.R. 5334)

First Five Years Fund

"We thank the Ways and Means Committee for your action on this legislation, which will put money back into the pockets of hardworking early childhood educators nationwide. We appreciate the bipartisan leadership of Congressman Jimmy Panetta, Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick, Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander, and Congressman David Valadao, for introducing this commonsense legislation that helps support our nation's early childhood educators." - First Five Years Fund

National Head Start Association, National Indian Head Start Directors Association, National AgFamilies Directors Association Head Start Association

"We, the undersigned national Head Start organizations, thank you for the opportunity to share our views regarding the House Ways and Means Committee's consideration of H.R. 5334, the Supporting Early Childhood Educators' Deductions (SEED) Act. We strongly urge you to support the SEED Act…" - Yasmina Vinci, Executive Director, National Head Start Association; Andrea Pesina, President, National Indian Head Start Directors Association; Cleo Rodríguez, Jr., Executive Director, National AgFamilies Directors Association Head Start Association

National Association for the Education of Young Children

"Effectively supporting the development and education of young children, before school age, is complex, skilled work, and the educators working with children in the earliest years play a critical role in supporting a strong developmental foundation for the rest of their lives…[L]ike their peers working in K-12 education, many early childhood educators also take on additional personal expenses to improve the environments in which young children learn and develop. As such, NAEYC appreciates the bipartisan effort by members of the Ways and Means Committee to recognize the value of the work done by educators in the earliest years by expanding access to the education expense deduction for early childhood educators working with children before Kindergarten." - National Association for the Education of Young Children

Taxpayer Experience Improvement Act (H.R.7971)

American Coalition for Taxpayer Rights (ACTR)

"We believe the bipartisan legislation, H.R. 7971, introduced by Reps. Schweikert and Beyer, is a very important step in the IRS modernization effort, and represents what taxpayers expect in 2026 in their interactions with the federal tax agency. Creating a dashboard that will provide taxpayers with real-time information on call wait times and improving existing tools to provide updates on the status of a refund are the kind of common-sense, practical solutions that all taxpayers and tax preparers should support." - ACTR

Bipartisan Policy Center Action (BPC Action)

"If enacted into law, this legislation will provide millions of Americans with faster, more helpful, and more reliable information about their tax returns and IRS service." - Michele Stockwell, President, BPC Action

National Taxpayers Union (NTU)

"This bipartisan legislation, led by Congressmen David Schweikert (R-AZ) and Donald Beyer (D-V A), would implement a variety of technological enhancements at the IRS that would increase transparency and accessibility for taxpayers." - NTU

National Small Business Association (NSBA)

"This legislation takes meaningful steps to modernize the Internal Revenue Service and improve the overall taxpayer experience, addressing longstanding challenges that disproportionately burden small businesses." - Todd McCracken, President & CEO, NSBA

IRS Whistleblower Program Improvement Act (H.R.7959)

Empower Oversight

"American taxpayers benefit from having a robust and successful program encouraging individuals in the private sector to come forward and blow the whistle on tax evasion. Tax whistleblowers allow the IRS to better target limited audit and examination resources on those corporations and individuals evading taxes rather than haphazardly auditing the vast majority of taxpayers who strive to comply with the tax laws. Since the IRS tax whistleblower law was first modernized in 2006, it has brought in billions of dollars into the Treasury that very likely wouldn't have been recovered otherwise." - Tristan Leavitt, President, Empower Oversight

National Whistleblower Center

"The National Whistleblower Center ("NWC") strongly supports H.R. 7959 as an essential reform to the current IRS whistleblower program. This program is plagued with massive delays and other procedural problems that are undermining the IRS's tax enforcement efforts." - Stephen M. Kohn, Chairman of the Board of Directors, National Whistleblower Center

National Taxpayers Union (NTU)

"The bill would allow for new evidence to be added to the record in appeals heard by the U.S. Tax Court, increase privacy protections for whistleblowers before the court, provide interest to whistleblower awardees if they are not paid within a year of IRS collection, improve tax treatment of program attorney fees, and make needed changes to program annual reporting to Congress. This bill will help save taxpayer dollars by making it easier for whistleblowers to come forward." - NTU