[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 33 (Tuesday, March 13, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E341-E342]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             INTRODUCTION OF THE TELEWORK TAX INCENTIVE ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. FRANK R. WOLF

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 13, 2001

  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing a bill to provide a 
$500 tax credit for telework. The purpose of my legislation is to 
provide an incentive to encourage more employers to consider telework 
for their employees. Telework should be a regular part of the 21st 
century workplace. The best part of telework is that it improves the 
quality of life for all.
  Nearly 20 million Americans telework today, and according to experts, 
40 percent of American jobs are compatible with telework. Telework 
reduces traffic congestion and air pollution. It reduces gas 
consumption and our dependency on foreign oil. Telework is good for 
families--working parents have flexibility to meet everyday demands. 
Telework provides people with disabilities greater job opportunities. 
Telework helps fill our nation's labor market shortage. It is also a 
good way for retirees to pick up part-time work.
  Companies save significantly when they have a strong telecommuting 
program. At one national telecommunications company, nearly 25 percent 
of its employees work from home at least one day per week. The company 
found positive results in the way of fewer days of sick leave, better 
worker retention, higher productivity, and increased morale.
  According to a George Mason University (Fairfax, VA) study, for every 
1 percent of the Washington metropolitan region workforce that 
telecommutes, there is a 3 percent reduction in traffic delays. George 
Mason University completed another study which suggests that on Friday 
mornings there is a 2- to 4-percent drop in traffic volume in the 
Washington metro region, a so-called ``Friday effect.''
  This is promising news because it means that with just a 1- to 2-
percent increase in the number of commuters who leave their cars parked 
and instead telework just one or two days per week, we could get to the 
so-called ``Friday effect'' all week long.
  Two years ago, I participated in Virginia Governor James Gilmore's 
telework task force. I want to take the opportunity to congratulate 
Governor Gilmore for his strong leadership and involvement in telework. 
The governor's task force made a number of recommendations to increase 
and promote telework. One recommendation was to establish a tax credit 
toward the purchase and installation of electronic and computer 
equipment that allow an employee to telework. For

[[Page E342]]

example, the cost of a computer, fax machine, modem, phone, printer, 
software, copier, and other expenses necessary to enable telework could 
count toward a tax credit, provided the person worked at home a minimum 
number of days per year.
  My legislation today would provide a $500 tax credit ``for expenses 
paid or incurred under a teleworking arrangement for furnishings and 
electronic information equipment which are used to enable an individual 
to telework.'' For example, the cost of a computer, fax machine, modem, 
software, etc., as well as home office furnishings would apply toward 
the credit. An employee must telework a minimum of 75 days per year to 
qualify for the tax credit. Both the employer and employee are eligible 
for the tax credit, but the tax credit goes to whomever absorbs the 
expense for setting up the at-home worksite.
  I have stated before that work is something you do, not someplace you 
go. Hopefully we can make telework a commonplace as the morning traffic 
report. There is nothing magical about strapping ourselves into a car 
and driving sometimes up to an hour and a half, arriving at a workplace 
and sitting before a computer. We can access the same information from 
a computer in our living rooms. Wouldn't it be great if we could 
replace the evening rush hour commute with time spent with the family, 
or coaching little league or other important quality of life matters?
  Mr. Speaker, I hope our colleagues will consider signing on as a 
cosponsor of this proposal to promote telework and provide choices for 
employees in the workplace.

                                H.R. --

       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 ``Telework Tax Incentive 
     Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       The Congress finds as follows:
       (1) Federal, State, and local governments spend billions of 
     dollars annually on the Nation's transportation needs.
       (2) Congestion on the Nation's roads costs over 
     $74,000,000,000 annually in lost work time, fuel consumption, 
     and costs of infrastructure and equipment repair.
       (3) On average on-road-vehicles contribute 30 percent of 
     nitrogen oxides emissions.
       (4) It is estimated that staying at home to work requires 3 
     times less energy consumption than commuting to work.
       (5) It was recently reported that if an identified 10 to 20 
     percent of commuters switched to teleworking, 1,800,000 tons 
     of regulated pollutants would be eliminated, 3,500,000,000 
     gallons of gas would be saved, 3,100,000,000 hours of 
     personal time would be freed up, and maintenance and 
     infrastructure costs would decrease by $500,000,000 annually 
     because of reduced congestion and reduced vehicle miles 
     traveled.
       (6) The average American daily commute is 62 minutes for a 
     44-mile round-trip (a total of 6 days per year and 5,808 
     miles per year).
       (7) The increase in work from 1969 to 1996, the increase in 
     hours mothers spend in paid work, combined with a shift 
     toward single-parent families resulted in families on average 
     experiencing a decrease of 22 hours a week (14 percent) in 
     parental time available outside of paid work they could spend 
     with their children.
       (8) Companies with teleworking programs have found that 
     teleworking can boost employee productivity 5 percent to 20 
     percent.
       (9) Today 60 percent of the workforce is involved in 
     information work (an increase of 43 percent since 1990) 
     allowing and encouraging decentralization of paid work to 
     occur.
       (10) In recent years, studies performed in the United 
     States have shown a marked expansion of teleworking, with an 
     estimate of 19,000,000 Americans teleworking by the year 
     2002, 5 times the amount in 1990.

     SEC. 3. CREDIT FOR TELEWORKING.

       (a) In General.--Subpart B of part IV of subchapter A of 
     chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to 
     foreign tax credit, etc.) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following new section:

     ``SEC. 30B. TELEWORKING CREDIT.

       ``(a) Allowance of Credit.--In the case of an eligible 
     taxpayer, there shall be allowed as a credit against the tax 
     imposed by this chapter for the taxable year an amount equal 
     to the qualified teleworking expenses paid or incurred by the 
     taxpayer during such year.
       ``(b) Maximum Credit.--
       ``(1) Per teleworker limitation.--The credit allowed by 
     subsection (a) for a taxable year with respect to qualified 
     teleworking expenses paid or incurred by or on behalf of an 
     individual teleworker shall not exceed $500.
       ``(2) Reduction for teleworking less than full year.--In 
     the case of an individual who is in a teleworking arrangement 
     for less than a full taxable year, the amount referred to 
     paragraph (1) shall be reduced by an amount which bears the 
     same ratio to $500 as the number of months in which such 
     individual is not in a teleworking arrangement bears to 12. 
     For purposes of the preceding sentence, an individual shall 
     be treated as being in a teleworking arrangement for a month 
     if the individual is subject to such arrangement for any day 
     of such month.
       ``(c) Definitions.--For purposes of this section--
       ``(1) Eligible taxpayer.--The term `eligible taxpayer' 
     means--
       ``(A) in the case of an individual, an individual who 
     performs services for an employer under a teleworking 
     arrangement, and
       ``(B) in the case of an employer, an employer for whom 
     employees perform services under a teleworking arrangement.
       ``(2) Teleworking arrangement.--The term `teleworking 
     arrangement' means an arrangement under which an employee 
     teleworks for an employer not less than 75 days per year.
       ``(3) Qualified teleworking expenses.--The term `qualified 
     teleworking expenses' means expenses paid or incurred under a 
     teleworking arrangement for furnishings and electronic 
     information equipment which are used to enable an individual 
     to telework.
       ``(4) Telework.--The term `telework' means to perform work 
     functions, using electronic information and communication 
     technologies, thereby reducing or eliminating the physical 
     commute to and from the traditional worksite.
       ``(d) Limitation Based on Amount of Tax.--
       ``(1) Liability for tax.--The credit allowable under 
     subsection (a) for any taxable year shall not exceed the 
     excess (if any) of--
       ``(A) the regular tax for the taxable year, reduced by the 
     sum of the credits allowable under subpart A and the 
     preceding sections of this subpart, over
       ``(B) the tentative minimum tax for the taxable year.
       ``(2) Carryforward of unused credit.--If the amount of the 
     credit allowable under subsection (a) for any taxable year 
     exceeds the limitation under paragraph (1) for the taxable 
     year, the excess shall be carried to the succeeding taxable 
     year and added to the amount allowable as a credit under 
     subsection (a) for such succeeding taxable year.
       ``(e) Special Rules.--
       ``(1) Basis reduction.--The basis of any property for which 
     a credit is allowable under subsection (a) shall be reduced 
     by the amount of such credit (determined without regard to 
     subsection (d)).
       ``(2) Recapture.--The Secretary shall, by regulations, 
     provide for recapturing the benefit of any credit allowable 
     under subsection (a) with respect to any property which 
     ceases to be property eligible for such credit.
       ``(3) Property used outside united states, etc., not 
     qualified.--No credit shall be allowed under subsection (a) 
     with respect to any property referred to in section 50(b) or 
     with respect to the portion of the cost of any property taken 
     into account under section 179.
       ``(4) Election not to take credit.--No credit shall be 
     allowed under subsection (a) for any expense if the taxpayer 
     elects to have this section not apply with respect to such 
     expense.
       ``(5) Denial of double beneift.--No deduction or credit 
     (other than under this section) shall be allowed under this 
     chapter with respect to any expense which is taken into 
     account in determining the credit under this section.''.
       (b) Technical Amendment.--Subsection (a) of section 1016 of 
     such Code is amended by striking ``and'' at the end of 
     paragraph (26), by striking the period at the end of 
     paragraph (27) and inserting ``; and'', and by adding at the 
     end the following new paragraph:
       ``(28) to the extent provided in section 30B(e), in the 
     case of amounts with respect to which a credit has been 
     allowed under section 30B.''
       (c) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for subpart 
     B of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 of such Code is 
     amended by adding at the end the following new item:


``Sec. 30B. Teleworking credit.''


       (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section 
     shall apply to amounts paid or incurred after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, in taxable years ending after such 
     date.

     

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