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This bill would amend the Internal Revenue Code to remove a tax deduction for damages paid by businesses in settling litigation with the government.

Current law allows businesses to claim a tax deduction for damages they pay resulting from a judgement or settlement brought against them by a government. Those damages can either be of a compensatory or punitive nature. They can also include in their gross income any amount paid to insurance as a result of the liability for punitive damages.

","official_title":"To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to disallow deductions for the payment of compensatory and punitive damages to a government, and for other purposes.","short_title":"Stop Deducting Damages Act of 2015","popular_title":null,"short_summary":"Stop Deducting Damages Act of 2015\n\n Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) deny a tax deduction for any amount paid or incurred for compensatory or punitive damages in connection with any judgment in, or settlement of, any action against a government; and (2) include in gross income any amount paid as insurance or otherwise due to liability for punitive damages.","summarized":true,"cost":null,"cost_commentary":"A CBO cost estimate is not available. ","impact":"Businesses that have settled litigation or paid damages to the government, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and the Department of Justice (DOJ).","argument_for":"A corporation that is the subject of legal action by the government should deal with the full impact of the damages or settlement they are forced to pay. Eliminating the deduction protects taxpayers.","argument_against":"These deductions exist because businesses are already required to pay taxes in addition to the litigation expenses, and removing them could cause people to lose their jobs and businesses to close.","bill_type":"hr","published":true,"type":"FederalBill","id":"hr2486-114","bill_id":"hr2486-114","formal_id":"H.R. 2486","chamber":"house","congress":114,"last_action_at":"2015-05-20T00:00:00.000Z","active":false,"enacted":false,"enacted_at":null,"vetoed":false,"last_vote_at":null,"debated_on":null,"congress_url":"https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th/house-bill/2486","plain_text_url":"http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-114hr2486ih/html/BILLS-114hr2486ih.htm","shareable_image_url":"https://n.causes.com/share-images/bills/hr2486-114.png","congress_full_text_url":"https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th/house-bill/2486/text","is_current_congress":false,"last_version_on":"2015-05-20","related_bill_ids":[],"progress":"Introduced","house_passage_result":false,"senate_passage_result":false,"position_count":130,"committees":[{"name":"Committee on Ways and Means","chamber":"house","committee_id":"HSWM","subcommittee":false}],"links":{"rollCalls":"/api/roll_calls?bill_id=hr2486-114","details":"/api/bills/hr2486-114/details","sharingMessage":"/api/sharing_messages/hr2486-114","positionsFor":"/api/bills/hr2486-114/positions/for","positionsAgainst":"/api/bills/hr2486-114/positions/against"},"upcoming":false,"cosponsors_count":1,"slug":"hr2486-114-stop-deducting-damages-act-of-2015","latest_chamber_votes_id":null,"official_url":null,"target_video":true,"following":false,"vote_count":2017,"yea_vote_count":1360,"nay_vote_count":654,"passed_house":false,"passed_senate":false,"vote_id":null,"my_position_id":null,"topic_ids":["taxes","financial-markets"],"issue_ids":["taxes","financial-markets"],"sponsor_id":211}],"votes":[],"issues":[{"id":"taxes","name":"Taxes","slug":"taxes","description":"US Congressional Legislation related to all types of Taxation: Income Tax, Sales Tax, Property Tax, Capital Gains Tax, Employment Taxes, and the Administration and collection of taxes (including regulating the IRS).","page_title":"Tax Related Federal Legislation including: Income and Sales Tax, Regulating the IRS - Vote on Bills, Stay informed, Hold Your Reps Accountable","icons":{"black":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/taxes/black_taxes-1429042039.svg","grey":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/taxes/grey_taxes-1429042039.svg","white":"https://assets.causes.com/issue/icon/taxes/white_taxes-1429042039.svg"},"cover_image_url":null,"is_following":false},{"id":"financial-markets","name":"Financial Markets","slug":"financial-markets","description":"Regulations for the US financial Markets - including Banking, Securities, Insurance, Currency and the Credit Markets. 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God gave us a pattern to follow for the Church and for how we should live. He DIDN'T say that following it is OPTIONAL! Nor did He say we could make changes to His pattern! I believe that there will be an eternal home of the soul - Heaven or Hell - and that Christ will judge us on the last day. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God!\n\nI am NOT\n• a Catholic\n• a Protestant\n• a Baptist\n• a Methodist\n• a Mormon\n• an Episcopalian\n• a Pentacostal\nor member of any other denomination.\n\n• I AM A CHRISTIAN, PERIOD!\n• I AM A MEMBER OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST, PERIOD! \n• I ACKNOWLEDGE NO HEAD OF THE CHURCH EXCEPT CHRIST JESUS, THE SON OF GOD, PERIOD! \n• I FOLLOW NO MANMADE CREED, BUT THE BIBLE ONLY, WHICH IS THE INSPIRED WORD OF GOD, PERIOD!\n\nI'm a 4th. generation Texan & the mother of 2 sons. I'm retired. I love the mountains and I like Oberhasli dairy goats, organic gardening, science fiction, astronomy, camping, and hunting. I'm very fond of my OESheepdog and my Norwegian Forest cat, too.\n\n• I'm a Constitutional Conservative and a patriot. \n•. I support the Tea Party. \n• I'm for limited government and free market capitalism. \n• I'm also for school choice and school prayer. \n• I'm against abortion and same-sex \"marriage\". \n• I'm TOTALLY AGAINST the implementation of Shariah law at any level in the United States! \n• I'm for SECURE BORDERS and reduced immigration, especially of Muslims! \n• I believe ALL illegal aliens should be deported. Those who enter our country illegally should not be given special privileges at the taxpayers' expense! \n• I believe that Congress should balance the budget and Uncle Sam should live within his means - without raising taxes! \n• I also believe in \"peace through strength\" - keep our military strong and keep out the transgenders! Freedom of religion applies to the military as well as civilians! I'm AGAINST allowing foreigners to join our military! That includes Obama's Dreamers! \n• I want to see a ban on GMOs! \n• I want to see the federal government OUT OF education! \n• Audit the Fed! \n• Abolish the IRS! \n• Just say \"NO\" to political correctness and race-baiting!\n\nThis is not a complete description of what I stand for. If you have specific questions about me, it can't hurt to ask! I might even answer! :-D #MakeDCListen\n\nTHIS IS MY COUNTRY!\n\nI AM TIRED OF AND FED UP WITH MUSLIM JIHADISTS AND ILLEGAL ALIENS IN MY COUNTRY, WHO ARE BRINGING DRUGS, DISEASE, AND CRIME, WHILE BEING CODDLED BY MY GOVERNMENT AT THE EXPENSE OF THE AMERICAN CITIZENS! IT'S NOT RIGHT FOR US TO HAVE TO SUFFER THIS INVASION BY PEOPLE WHO DON'T RESPECT OUR LAWS, OUR PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE, OUR FLAG, OUR LANGUAGE (That's ENGLISH!), OR OUR CULTURE! AND I'M TIRED OF AND FED UP WITH HAVING TO \"PRESS 1 FOR ENGLISH\"! WE NEED A MORATORIUM ON MUSLIM IMMIGRATION AND WE NEED TO KICK OUT ALL OF THE ILLEGAL ALIENS WHO BY DEFINITION ARE CRIMINALS! WE NEED TO MAKE OUR GOVERNMENT UNDERSTAND THAT WE DON'T WANT AMERICA TURNED INTO A THIRD WORLD CESSPOOL!\n\nI AM NOT ANTI-IMMIGRANT. I AM FOR THE RULE OF LAW. I DON'T CARE WHAT COLOR YOUR SKIN IS OR WHAT YOUR NATIVE LANGUAGE IS. BUT IF YOU COME TO MY COUNTRY TO LIVE, I EXPECT YOU TO LEARN AND SPEAK ENGLISH AND TO OBEY OUR LAWS! NONE OF THAT SHARIAH STUFF! WE HAVE FREEDOM OF RELIGION HERE IN AMERICA, AND ISLAM IS A CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER TO THAT FREEDOM! SPARE ME YOUR TAQIYYA AND HUDNA! YOU WANT TO BELIEVE MUHAMMAD IS A PROPHET OF GOD? THAT IS YOUR RIGHT, BUT IT IS OUR RIGHT TO DISAGREE WITH YOUR BELIEFS. IT IS NOT YOUR RIGHT TO KILL US FOR DISAGREEING! IF YOU DON'T LIKE OUR LAWS, YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO TRY TO CHANGE THEM THROUGH LEGAL AND PEACEFUL MEANS, BUT MANY OF US WILL PEACEFULLY AND RESPECTFULLY (insofar as it is possible) DO OUR UTMOST TO PREVENT YOU FROM SUCCEEDING, IF YOUR GOAL IS CULTURAL AND POLITICAL JIHAD.\n\nTHIS IS THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, AND WE HAVE A HERITAGE OF HONOR, PRIDE AND COURAGE. OUR NATION, MOREOVER, WAS FOUNDED ON CHRISTIAN PRINCIPLES! OUR REVERENCE FOR GOD AND HIS CHRIST AND THE HOLY BIBLE IS WHAT ENABLED AMERICA TO BECOME GREATLY BLESSED BY GOD. WE HAVE OUR PROBLEMS; WE ARE NOT PERFECT, BUT WE WILL FIGHT THE POWERS OF DARKNESS AND EVIL, SO HELP US, GOD!\n\nTHIS IS AMERICA! LOVE IT OR LEAVE IT!!!","twitter_id":null,"facebook_id":"lafigarus","youtube_id":"LauraroseofTexas","google_plus_id":null,"website":null,"slug":"loraki","issue_count":120,"is_following":null,"influence_score":47090,"influence_level":40,"follower_count":535,"following_count":3688,"position_count":920,"id":"8mrgkD9d","partner_id":null}],"bill_position":{"flagged":false,"id":"77be0064-adf7-439e-89e0-238bb6b52aad","argument_for":"Do it right or pay.","argument_against":null,"show_argument_for":true,"show_argument_against":false,"upvote_count":1,"upvotes_for_count":1,"upvotes_against_count":null,"has_upvoted":false,"endorsement_count":1,"links":{"self":"https://www.causes.com/positions/77be0064-adf7-439e-89e0-238bb6b52aad"},"body":"Do it right or pay.","stance":"yea","created_at":"2016-12-17T07:22:00.081Z","shareable_image_url":"https://n.causes.com/share-images/positions/77be0064-adf7-439e-89e0-238bb6b52aad.png","note_color":null,"note_text":null,"bill_id":"hr2486-114","user_id":"49Nlj03Z","endorser_ids":["8mrgkD9d"]}}

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Eliminating a Tax Deduction for Businesses That Pay Fines to the Government