The Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Tax (HEART) Act, H.R. 6081, passed the House on a 403-0 vote and the Senate by unanimous consent. H.R. 6081 provides a number of important tax benefits to military members. Among these are:

o Makes permanent the ability to include tax-exempt pay received in a combat zone to qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC);
o Permits reservists to make penalty free withdrawals from retirement plans to cover unexpected financial issues associated with activation;
o Provides a tax credit for differential wage payments made to Reserve Component members by civilian employers;
o Permits employers of Reserve Component members to consider activated members killed on active duty to be considered returned to employment on the day prior to death for purposes of benefit accrual;
o Extends to five years the period for which veterans may amend a tax return to recover overpayment of tax as a result of delayed disability awards;
o Permits contribution of military death gratuity payments to Roth IRAs and Education Savings Accounts;
o Designates housing allowances paid to military members as “support and maintenance in-kind” for determination of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits;
o Permits military spouses without taxpayer identification numbers to qualify for recently enacted economic stimulus payments.

We now await the Presidential signature that will make these provisions law.