Senators Mark Warner (D-VA) and Jerry Moran (R-KS) along with Representatives Mike Kelly (R-PA) and Jimmy Panetta (D-CA), reintroduced the Broadband Grant Tax Treatment Act. The legislation would amend the Internal Revenue Code to ensure that funding for broadband deployment from the Infrastructure Law and the American Rescue Plan (ARP) will not be considered taxable income. This legislation was first introduced last Congress in both the Senate and the House with bipartisan support.
Grants awarded for the purposes of broadband deployment are currently factored into a company’s income and are subject to taxation.
This bipartisan, bicameral legislation moves to exclude broadband deployment grants awarded through the Infrastructure Law, ARP, and Tribal Broadband Connectivity Fund from an organization’s income, ensuring the entirety of federal dollars awarded to companies for the purpose of deploying broadband around the country can be used wholly for that purpose, rather than making their way back to the government through taxes.
“We have made significant strides to ensure that access to high-speed internet is available to more Americans than ever,” said Warner, a member of the Finance Committee that oversees the nation’s tax code and a primary author of the broadband provisions in the Infrastructure Law and ARP. “But taxing broadband investment awards diminishes our efforts.”
“Reliable, high-speed internet is more crucial than ever for Kansans to run their businesses, access telehealth or pursue an education,” said Moran. “This commonsense legislation would make certain federal grants provided for broadband deployment are not counted as taxable income to maximize the impact and success of these resources.”
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