Press Releases

Today, Representatives Suzan DelBene (WA-01) and Darin LaHood (IL-16), members of the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee, introduced bipartisan legislation to simplify the tax filing and payment processes for taxpayers and small businesses.  

The Tax Administration Simplification Act would apply the ‘mailbox rule’ to electronically submitted documents and tax payments to the IRS, allow newly formed small businesses to be treated as an S Corporation on their first tax filing, and revise the estimated tax payment deadlines to fall quarterly instead of the current irregular payment schedule. 

“Taxpayers should have one clear deadline to file documents and make required payments. The IRS should not treat taxpayers who choose to file electronically differently than those who file by mail. This bill would ensure the same standard to all Americans regardless of how they file,” said DelBene. 

The legislation incorporates three recommendations from the National Taxpayer Advocate’s annual Purple Book and builds off of previous legislation aimed at streamlining the tax filing process.  

This legislation is cosponsored by Representatives Brad Schneider (IL-10), Randy Feenstra (IA-04), Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-01), and Jimmy Panetta (CA-19). 

The bill: 

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• Applies the “mailbox rule” to documents and payments electronically submitted to the IRS. Under current law, if a taxpayer submits certain payments or documents to the IRS electronically on a given due date, but they are not processed until the next day, they would be considered late. The Tax Administration Simplification Act would ensure that documents and payments submitted electronically are considered made on the date submitted, even if they are not received or reviewed until a later date. 

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• Extends the time for making S Corporation elections. Under current law, many small business owners miss the deadline for electing to be treated as an S Corporation because the election deadline generally precedes the filing deadline for the corporation’s first income tax return. The Tax Administration Simplification Act would allow taxpayers to elect “S” status on their first timely-filed income tax return. 

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• Revises estimated income tax payment deadlines. Under current law, estimated tax payment deadlines are spaced at uneven intervals throughout the year. While these payments are often referred to as “quarterly payments,” they are currently spaced at three-month, two-month, three-month, and four-month intervals (April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15). The Tax Administration Simplification Act would change the estimated tax payment deadlines to fall quarterly, making it easier for taxpayers to calculate their net income (April 15, July 15, October 15, and January 15).