On November 15, 2021, U.S. President Joseph Biden signed into law the “Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.”1  The bipartisan infrastructure bill is one of two major pieces of legislation the Democrats have been focusing on – with support from some Republicans – and it became Public Law No: 117-58 on November 15, 2021.  The other is the “Build Back Better Act,” which has not yet been voted on by either the House or the Senate.

WHY THIS MATTERS

While the bipartisan legislation does not contain individual tax rate proposals that would impact international assignees or programs directly, the legislation does contain other tax provisions that may impact individuals and certain employers.

Revenue Raising Tax Provisions with Impact on Individuals or Employers

The following provisions will offset the projected spending in the infrastructure legislation.2

  • Requiring information reporting with respect to digital assets such as cryptocurrency, generally effective for returns and statements required to be filed or furnished after December 31, 2023 (estimated to raise approximately $28 billion over a 10-year period).3
  • Terminating the employee retention credit earlier than scheduled by making it applicable to wages paid before October 1, 2021 (rather than wages paid before January 1, 2022) (estimated to raise approximately $8.2 billion over a 10-year period).
  • Modifying the Internal Revenue Code section 430(h)(2)(C)(iv) table of applicable minimum and maximum percentages with respect to certain pension plans (i.e., “pension smoothing”) (estimated to raise approximately $2.9 billion over a 10-year period).       

Revenue-Neutral Relief for Taxpayers Affected by Disasters or Other Critical Events

Other individual tax provisions that have no revenue impact and provide relief for certain taxpayers:

  • Modification of automatic extension of certain deadlines in the case of taxpayers affected by federally-declared disasters;
  • Modifications of rules for postponing certain acts by reason of service in combat zones or contingency operations;
  • Tolling of time for filing a petition with the Tax Court in certain cases in which a filing location is inaccessible or otherwise unavailable on the date the petition would otherwise be due;
  • Authority to postpone certain tax deadlines by reason of certain “significant fires.”

KPMG NOTE

KPMG LLP (U.S.) is following the legislative process of the “Build Back Better Act” and will be providing further updates as necessary.  Read KPMG’s analysis and observations: “’Build Back Better Act’ tax proposals in pending House bill” [PDF 2.4 MB] (210 pages) (November 11, 2021)

FOOTNOTES

1  See: H.R. 3684.  For further coverage, see “President signs bipartisan infrastructure bill, tax provisions are enacted” in TaxNewsFlash (November 15, 2021), a publication of the KPMG International member firm in the United States.  For prior coverage, see GMS Flash Alert 2021-210, August 3, 2021.

2  Read the JCT revenue estimate - JCX-33-21.

3  For additional reading on cryptocurrency reporting, see N. Suit, C. Daftary, and P. Garlett, "Broker Crypto Tax Information Reporting Is Here, But It May Not Be Just for Brokers Anymore," Journal of Taxation of Financial Products (Volume 18, Issue 3, 2021) at: https://tax.kpmg.us/insights/kpmg-tax-published-articles.html.

The above information is not intended to be "written advice concerning one or more Federal tax matters" subject to the requirements of section 10.37(a)(2) of Treasury Department Circular 230 as the content of this document is issued for general informational purposes only.

The information contained in this newsletter was submitted by the KPMG International member firm in the United States.

Connect with us

VIEW ALL

GMS Flash Alert is a Global Mobility Services publication of the KPMG LLP Washington National Tax practice. The KPMG name and logo are trademarks used under license by the independent member firms of the KPMG global organization. KPMG International Limited is a private English company limited by guarantee and does not provide services to clients. No member firm has any authority to obligate or bind KPMG International or any other member firm vis-à-vis third parties, nor does KPMG International have any such authority to obligate or bind any member firm. The information contained herein is of a general nature and is not intended to address the circumstances of any particular individual or entity. Although we endeavor to provide accurate and timely information, there can be no guarantee that such information is accurate as of the date it is received or that it will continue to be accurate in the future. No one should act on such information without appropriate professional advice after a thorough examination of the particular situation.

© 2024 KPMG LLP, a Delaware limited liability partnership and a member firm of the KPMG global organization of independent member firms affiliated with KPMG International Limited, a private English company limited by guarantee. All rights reserved.


For more detail about the structure of the KPMG global organization please visit https://kpmg.com/governance.