Washington, D.C. - U.S. Congressman Kevin Brady (R-The Woodlands), author of the provisions in the recently enacted Gulf Opportunity Zone Act that ensure Hurricane Rita and Katrina victims are treated equally in the tax code, encouraged constituents to read the most recent publication from the IRS that explains step by step how the new laws work and how to apply them to your individual federal income tax return.

"Making sure victims of Hurricanes Rita and Katrina are treated equally when it comes to their taxes is a huge priority for me, it's important that every family affected by this disaster read this booklet and take advantage of every tax relief provision they qualify for," said Brady. 

The IRS publication number 4492 explains recent changes to the tax law and details the relief provisions available to those affected by Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma.  Taxpayers can access the booklet by going on-line to www.IRS.gov.  The IRS estimates that paper copies will be available in about two weeks.

This new publication will list the disaster areas for each hurricane and explain which areas are eligible for administrative relief from the IRS and which areas receive special tax breaks under recently enacted provisions of the tax law.

 

Of special importance to Southeast Texas, the Gulf Opportunity Zone Act provisions allow Rita affected families to dip into IRA's and pensions without penalty, fully deduct all of their personal property losses from their itemized federal taxes and, for the working poor, makes sure their child and earned income tax credits are not impacted by the disaster.

 

The publication not only provides information useful to individuals but highlights the changes businesses need to know about, such as a special depreciation allowance for qualified Gulf Opportunity Zone property, an increase in the amount affected businesses can expense instead of depreciating and new net operating loss (NOL) rules for losses in the Gulf Opportunity Zone.