Bill · S. 1323· Senate(119-S-1323)
The Facilitating Increased Resilience, Environmental Weatherization And Lowered Liability (FIREWALL) Act
- Introduced
- 4/8/2025
- Last activity
- 4/8/2025 — Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
- Sponsored by
- Adam Schiff
- Cosponsors
- - 0 - 1
- Introduced
- In Committee
What this bill would do
This bill, known as the "FIREWALL Act," proposes an amendment to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. It aims to establish a new refundable personal tax credit for qualified disaster mitigation expenditures. Individuals can claim a credit equal to 50 percent of their qualified expenses for disaster mitigation. The credit is subject to a maximum limit of $25,000 and includes a phaseout based on income. These credits are intended for taxpayers using a dwelling as their principal residence in specific areas. The changes would take effect for taxable years beginning after December 31, 2024.
Who it would affect, and how
Potential Positive Impacts for People
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Financial Assistance for Home Safety: The bill allows individuals to receive a credit equal to 50 percent of their qualified disaster mitigation expenditures, which can help offset the cost of making homes more resilient (Section 2(a)).
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Increased Resilience Against Natural Disasters: Taxpayers can use the credit for a wide variety of improvements, such as reinforcing roofs, installing flood vents, creating fire buffers, or elevating dwelling units to mitigate hazards (Section 2(c)(1)(A)).
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Protection Against Specific Hazards: The provisions cover many specific needs, including protection from wind-borne debris, fire resistance, flood control through stormwater systems, and even the installation of standby generators (Section 2(c)(1)(A)).
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Support for Drought and Smoke Issues: The credit can be applied toward water capture and delivery systems for drought events, as well as equipment designed to prevent smoke inhalation, such as air filters (Section 2(c)(1)(A)).
Potential Negative Impacts for People
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Income Limitations: The credit is subject to a phaseout, meaning the amount available to a taxpayer is reduced based on their adjusted gross income relative to $200,000 (Section 2(a)(2)).
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Caps on Total Credits: There is a maximum credit limit of $25,000, which limits the total amount of relief an individual can receive (Section 2(a)(2)(1)).
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Restrictions on Shared Dwellings: For households where two or more individuals jointly occupy a dwelling, the maximum amount of expenditures taken into account is capped at $25,000 for the entire unit (Section 2(a)(3)(A)).
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Strict Documentation Requirements: Taxpayers claiming the credit must provide the Secretary with adequate documentation regarding their specific expenditures and any other information requested (Section 2(d)(1)).
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Exclusion of Certain Funding: The credit cannot be used for any expenditure that has already been paid, funded, or reimbursed by a Federal, State, or local government entity (Section 2(c)(1)(B)).
- 4/8/2025
- Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
- 1 Cosponsor added.
- Introduced in Senate
One bill Congress.gov lists as related to this one — companions in the other chamber, earlier versions, and bills this one absorbed or was folded into.
Tim SheehyRepublican · Montana