Washington, D.C. (July 11, 2025) – The American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) and state CPA societies have strongly advocated Congress to authorize the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to postpone federal tax deadlines for taxpayers affected by a qualified state-declared disaster upon a declaration by the state governor. Earlier this year, the House of Representatives unanimously passed the Filing Relief for Natural Disasters Act (H.R. 517) and this week the Senate followed suit, passing the bill by unanimous consent. The bill now heads to the President’s desk for his signature.
Historically, the process of receiving tax filing and payment relief from the IRS during a disaster is triggered by a federal disaster declaration, which can come days, weeks or months after a disaster. Therefore, affected taxpayers may wait months before knowing if they will be entitled to much needed tax relief. This bipartisan, bicameral legislation will expedite the issuance of federal tax relief and provide the IRS with authority to grant tax relief once the governor of a state declares a disaster or state of emergency.
“The passage of this important legislation is a major win for taxpayers and tax practitioners across the country,” said AICPA President & CEO Mark Koziel, CPA, CGMA. “When taxpayers are impacted by a disaster, the stress, anxiety and emotional toll can be overwhelming – these people should be afforded every opportunity to meet their tax obligations without additional hardship. We applaud the actions taken by members of Congress to set aside political ideology and unanimously support taxpayers by providing disaster victims’ timely relief. This bill will allow those impacted by a natural disaster to have certainty that tax filing deadlines will be extended earlier in the process, and sometimes before the disaster occurs, so they can focus on their safety.”
About the American Institute of CPAs
The American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) is the world’s largest member association representing the CPA profession, with 397,000 members and a history of serving the public interest since 1887. AICPA members represent many areas of practice, including business and industry, public practice, government, education, and consulting. A founding member of the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants, the AICPA sets ethical standards for the profession, attestation standards, and U.S. auditing standards for private companies, not-for-profit organizations, and federal, state, and local governments. It develops and grades the Uniform CPA Examination, offers specialized credentials, partners across the profession to build future talent, and drives continuing education to advance the vitality, relevance, and quality of the profession.
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BACKGROUND:
April 1, 2025 — AICPA Applauds Passage of Bipartisan Bills to Improve Tax Administration and Offer Relief to Taxpayers, Practitioners The AICPA applauded the unanimous passage in the House of 4 bills that AICPA recently submitted a support letter on H.R. 1152, the Electronic Filing and Payment Fairness Act, H.R. 998, the Internal Revenue Service Math and Taxpayer Help Act, H.R. 517, the Filing Relief for Natural Disasters Act (FRNDA), and H.R. 1491, the Disaster Related Extension of Deadlines Act (DREDA).
The AICPA supports FRNDA, sponsored by Rep. David Kustoff (TN-8) and Rep. Judy Chu (CA-28). To hasten the issuance of federal tax relief, the FRNDA would provide the IRS with authority to grant tax relief once the governor of a state declares either a disaster or state of emergency. The FRNDA would also expand the mandatory federal filing extension under Sec. 7508(d) from 60 days to 120 days, providing taxpayers with additional time to file tax returns following a disaster. Increasing such period to a mandatory 120-day period would provide taxpayers and tax practitioners much needed relief, even before a disaster strikes.
March 6, 2025 — 2025 AICPA Tax Legislation Priorities and 2025 Tax Legislative Compendium AICPA submitted to Congress its 2025 AICPA tax legislation priorities (which includes - provide permanent and consistent tax relief to individuals and businesses affected by natural disasters (AICPA comments), such as the Filing Relief for Natural Disasters Act (H.R. 517 / S. 132)).
Sept. 15, 2021 —The AICPA expressed strong support for S. 2748, the Filing Relief for Natural Disasters Act, that would extend the IRS’s authority to grant tax relief following state-declared disasters and states of emergency. The bill would also expand the mandatory federal filing extension from 60 days to 120 days, which provides taxpayers with additional time to file taxes following a disaster.
June 2, 2021 — The AICPA has expressed strong support or the bipartisan "Filing Relief for Natural Disasters Act" introduced by Representatives Judy Chu (D-CA) and John Katko (R-NY). This bill would extend the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) authority to grant tax filing relief following state-declared disasters and states of emergency. The legislation also expands the mandatory federal filing extension from 60 days to 120 days, which provides taxpayers with additional time to file their taxes following a disaster.