[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 9 (Thursday, January 15, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E96-E97]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     INTRODUCTION OF THE CHARITABLE DRIVING TAX RELIEF ACT OF 2009

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. THOMAS E. PETRI

                              of wisconsin

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, January 15, 2009

  Mr. PETRI. Madam Speaker, today, I am introducing the Charitable 
Driving Tax Relief Act of 2009 to remove a serious ``disincentive that 
limits the participation of many in charitable activities. Charitable 
organizations play an important role in our society, and it is 
important that Congress not stand in the way by penalizing those who 
wish to offer their services to these groups.
  Under current law, individuals that volunteer their time and energy 
by driving their personal vehicles on behalf of a charitable group can 
end up with an unpleasant surprise in the form of an unanticipated tax 
bill. Specifically, volunteer drivers receiving reimbursement for the 
use of their vehicle are taxed on these payments to the extent that 
they exceed 14 cents per mile. This treatment stands in stark contrast 
to the 55 cent allowance for reimbursement for the business use of that 
same vehicle.
  The Charitable Driving Tax Relief Act will equalize the tax treatment 
of charitable reimbursements with those received for business driving 
because the point of the payment is essentially the same, that is, to 
cover the cost

[[Page E97]]

of operating a personal vehicle while performing an important service 
in the pursuit of a greater good.
  To achieve this end, my legislation would exclude from gross income 
any reimbursement received for the use of a volunteer's car while 
assisting a charitable group, limited only by the cap the Internal 
Revenue Service sets each year regarding business driving. This 
treatment would be available only for services provided without 
compensation and drivers would be required to maintain sufficient 
records to substantiate the charitable use of their vehicles. Finally, 
this bill drops the requirement that charitable groups report these 
reimbursements to the IRS, removing an administrative and paperwork 
burden that detracts resources from their larger purpose.
  Each day, thousands of Americans lend a hand in providing 
transportation services to a multitude of organizations engaged in good 
works. These activities include assisting individuals with their 
routine grocery shopping, providing the use of a four-wheel drive 
vehicle to transport home-visit nurses during inclement weather, 
delivering meals as part of a holiday food drive, helping individuals 
to keep their medical appointments, and many more similar activities.
  These volunteer drivers are donating their time and their talents, 
not their vehicles, and accepting reimbursement for the use of that 
car, incidental to their time and talent donation, is a reasonable act, 
which should not result in an additional tax liability. Today, when it 
comes to driving a personal vehicle, our tax code makes a distinction 
between business and charitable uses. This distinction is a mistake; it 
is a serious disincentive to charitable activities, and it should be 
corrected. I encourage my colleagues to support the continued efforts 
of our charity-minded constituents by cosponsoring the Charitable 
Driving Tax Relief Act of 2009.

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