Tuition Tax Relief Act
Latest action. Referred to Senate Committee on Finance.
Tuition Tax Relief Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow individual taxpayers an income tax credit for 50 percent of the tuition paid for the elementary, secondary, college, or post-secondary vocational education of the taxpayer, his spouse, or any of his dependents. Sets forth maximum dollar amounts allowable as a credit for calendar years 1980, 1981, 1982 and thereafter. Treats tuition payments as paid for calendar year 1980, only if such payments are made on or after August 1, 1980, and before February 1, 1981, for education furnished on or after August 1, 1980, and before January 1, 1981. Treats tuition payments as paid for calendar year 1981 and thereafter only if such payments are made during the particular calendar year or within one month of the beginning or close of such calendar year for education furnished during that year. Excludes graduate students from eligibility for the credit. Requires full-time or qualified half-time attendance at an eligible educational institution. Excludes from the definition of "tuition" any amounts paid for books, supplies, and equipment for courses of instruction, meals, lodging, transportation, or education below the first-grade level. Forbids any construction of this Act as granting the Government additional authority to examine the books or activities of any church school except to the extent necessary to determine whether such school is an eligible educational institution. Provides that an educational institution which enrolls a student for whom a tax credit is claimed under this Act shall not be considered to be a recipient of Federal assistance. Requires the disregard of any amount received by the taxpayer as a tuition tax credit for purposes of determining the eligibility of the taxpayer for Federal or State educational assistance.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in Senate" stage on May 8, 1979. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on May 8, 1979: Referred to Senate Committee on Finance.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the Senate
- Passage by the House
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 96th Congress (1979-80), 613 of the 12,581 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 4.9 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
ROBERT PACKWOOD (R-OR) introduced it on May 8, 1979, and 4 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 3 Democrats, 1 Republican.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on May 8, 1979, 17292 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 17292 days ago, on May 8, 1979.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 96th Congress has not finished by January 3, 1981 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- SenateIn committee, no floor vote yet
- HouseAwaits Senate passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers