[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 133 (Tuesday, July 28, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4530-S4531]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  REMOTE AND MOBILE WORKER RELIEF ACT

  Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, during New York's toughest moments during 
the pandemic, medical professionals from around the country came to 
hard-hit New York City to help. They formed an essential part of the 
city's medical response, and they undoubtedly saved lives. They are 
deserving of New York's profound gratitude--and apparently of something 
else: tax bills. That is right. In May, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo 
announced that New York would be levying income tax on any money these 
medical professionals made while they were there.
  Now, individuals can generally receive a tax credit in their home 
State for income tax paid to another State, thus avoiding double 
taxation of their income, but since New York has one of the highest 
income taxes in the country, a lot of these medical professionals will 
be facing a higher than normal tax bill on any money they earn in New 
York. The situation is even worse for residents of States without an 
income tax, like my home State of South Dakota. Medical professionals 
from those States will simply have to absorb the full cost of this 
unexpected bill.
  The healthcare workers who traveled to New York are not alone in 
facing a complicated tax situation. For Americans who regularly spend 
limited time working in different States throughout the year, the 
situation can be even worse. A traveling nurse, for example, or a 
corporate trainer might work in not just one but several additional 
States during a given year, and navigating the resulting income tax 
situation can be incredibly complicated.
  Some States, like New York, aggressively tax individuals they deem to 
have earned income within their borders, even if the income in question 
is just the salary they earned from their employer while attending a 2-
day training conference in the State. Other States allow nonresidents 
to work for longer periods--as long as 60 days in some cases--before 
they require an individual to file an income tax return.
  Navigating different States' requirements can be a real burden for 
both employees and employers and can discourage interstate commerce. It 
is particularly challenging for small businesses, which frequently lack 
the in-house tax staff and tracking capabilities of larger 
organizations.
  This situation cries out for a solution. For the past four 
Congresses, I have introduced legislation--the Mobile Workforce State 
Income Tax Simplification Act--to create a uniform standard for mobile 
workers. Under my bill, if you spent 30 days or fewer working in a 
different State, you would be taxed as normal by your home State. If 
you spent more than 30 days working in a different State, you would be 
subject to that other State's income tax in addition to the income tax 
in your home State. Having a universal rule like this would make life a 
lot easier for workers and for employers.
  In June I introduced an updated version of my mobile workforce bill--
the Remote and Mobile Worker Relief Act, which I am pleased to announce

[[Page S4531]]

has been included in the HEALS Act, the phase 4 coronavirus relief 
package the Republicans introduced yesterday. Like my original mobile 
workforce bill, the Remote and Mobile Worker Relief Act would create a 
uniform, 30-day standard governing State income tax liability for 
mobile workers, but my new bill goes further and addresses some of the 
particular challenges faced by mobile and remote workers as a result of 
the coronavirus.
  The Remote and Mobile Worker Relief Act would establish a special 90-
day standard for healthcare workers who travel to another State to help 
during the pandemic. This should ensure that no healthcare worker faces 
an unexpected tax bill for the contributions he or she makes to 
fighting the coronavirus.
  My new bill also addresses the possible tax complications that could 
face remote workers as a result of the pandemic. During the coronavirus 
crisis, many workers who usually travel to their offices every day have 
ended up working from home. This doesn't present a tax problem for most 
employees, but it does present a possible problem for workers who live 
in a different State than the one in which they work.
  Workers who live in a different State from the one in which they work 
are subject to income tax from both States, but under current State tax 
laws, they usually pay most or all of their State income taxes to the 
State in which they earn their income rather than their State of 
residence. However, now that some workers who usually work in a 
different State have been working from home, there is a risk that their 
State of residence could consider the resulting income as allocated to 
and taxable by it as well. That could mean a higher tax bill for a lot 
of workers.
  My bill would preempt this problem by codifying the pre-pandemic 
status quo. Under my bill, if you plan to work in North Carolina but 
had to work from home in South Carolina during the pandemic, your 
income would still be taxed as if you were going into the office in 
North Carolina every day, just as it would have been if the pandemic 
had never happened.
  Relief for mobile workers is a bipartisan idea. A version of my 
original mobile workforce bill has passed the House of Representatives 
multiple times, and the only reason it hasn't advanced so far in the 
Senate is because of the opposition of a handful of States that 
aggressively tax--you have got it--temporary workers.
  Now that the pandemic has highlighted the challenges facing mobile 
workers and the potential challenges facing remote workers, I am 
pleased that my legislation will be considered here in the Senate as 
part of the broader coronavirus relief package that we hope to pass in 
the next couple of weeks. I am grateful to Chairman Grassley for his 
support for this legislation.
  It is unconscionable--unconscionable--that we would allow healthcare 
workers who risked their own lives to care for individuals in 
coronavirus-stricken States to be punished with unexpected tax bills. 
We need to make sure that Americans who work from home to help slow the 
spread of the virus don't face a complicated tax situation or an 
unexpectedly high tax bill as a result.
  Americans have faced enough challenges over the past several months. 
Let's make sure tax problems are not among them.
  I yield the floor
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Cassidy). The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. CASEY. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call 
be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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