[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7998 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7998
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to extend and expand the
work opportunity tax credit.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 19, 2026
Mr. Bell introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Ways and Means
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A BILL
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to extend and expand the
work opportunity tax credit.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Building Reentry and Inclusive
Development for Greater Employment Act'' or the ``BRIDGE Act''.
SEC. 2. EXTENSION AND EXPANSION OF WORK OPPORTUNITY TAX CREDIT.
(a) Extension of Credit.--Section 51(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986 is amended by striking ``December 31, 2025'' and inserting
``December 31, 2030''.
(b) Expansion of Credit.--
(1) Qualified ex-felon.--Section 51(d)(4) of such Code is
amended to read as follows:
``(4) Qualified criminal justice-impacted individual.--The
term `qualified criminal justice-impacted individual' means any
individual who is certified by the designated local agency--
``(A) as having been--
``(i) convicted of a felony under any
statute of the United States or any State, or
``(ii) incarcerated in any Federal, State,
or local correctional institution, or placed on
probation, for a period of at least 90 days,
and
``(B) as having a hiring date which is not more
than 3 years after--
``(i) in the case of an individual to whom
only clause (i) of subparagraph (A) applies,
the last date on which such individual was so
convicted or was released from prison,
``(ii) in the case of an individual to whom
only clause (ii) of subparagraph (A) applies,
the last date on which such individual was
released from such incarceration or was
discharged from such probation, and
``(iii) in the case of an individual to
whom both clauses (i) and (ii) of subparagraph
(A) apply, the later of the dates specified in
clauses (i) and (ii) of this subparagraph.''.
(2) Qualified opportunity youth.--Section 51(d) of such
Code is amended by adding at the end the following new
paragraph:
``(16) Qualified opportunity youth.--The term `qualified
opportunity youth' means any individual who is certified by the
designated local agency as being an out-of-school youth (as
defined in section 129(a)(1)(B) of the Workforce Innovation and
Opportunity Act).''.
(c) Conforming Amendments.--Section 51(d)(1) of such Code is
amended--
(1) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``qualified ex-felon''
and inserting ``qualified criminal justice-impacted
individual'',
(2) in subparagraph (I), by striking ``or'',
(3) in subparagraph (J), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``, or'', and
(4) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
``(K) a qualified opportunity youth.''.
(d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsections (a), (b),
and (c) shall apply to individuals who begin work for the employer
after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(e) Administrative Provisions.--
(1) Regulations by secretary of the treasury.--The
Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe such regulations or
other guidance as may be necessary or appropriate to carry out
the purposes of the amendments made by subsections (a), (b),
and (c), including by implementing the recommendations
described in subclauses (I) and (II) of paragraph (2)(B)(i).
(2) Study by comptroller general.--
(A) In general.--The Comptroller General of the
United States shall conduct a study on the efficiency
of the administrative process through which employers
may claim the credit determined under section 51(a) of
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
(B) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date
of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General
shall submit to Congress and the Secretary of the
Treasury a report on the study described in
subparagraph (A), and such report shall include--
(i) recommendations for enhancing the
efficiency of the administrative process
referred to in such subparagraph, including
by--
(I) improving interagency
coordination and data collection
procedures for purposes of carrying out
such administrative process, and
(II) consolidating and simplifying
any informational requirements on
employers claiming the credit
determined under section 51(a) of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, and
(ii) such other information as the
Comptroller General determines appropriate.
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