August 1, 2013 -- IAFF General President Harold Schaitberger outlined the IAFF’s priorities for federal tax reform in a letter sent July 25 to the Senate Finance Committee. Schaitberger is urging Congress to protect a number of specific tax provisions that benefit fire fighters and emergency response personnel, including continuing the tax exclusions for employer-provided health care and pension contributions.

Over the past several months, tax writers in both the House and Senate have been laying the groundwork to produce legislation that would reform the tax code. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI) announced that instead of deciding which tax preferences to remove from the tax code they would start with a “clean slate” and require lawmakers and outside organizations to make a convincing case on why any tax provision should be retained.

In explaining the importance of the tax exclusions for health and retirement benefits, Schaitberger wrote, “Our members especially depend on this provision, given the higher benefits they receive based on the high risk of the profession. Eliminating this tax exclusion would amount to an unfair and disproportionate tax increase on those front-line responders we ask to protect the public safety.”

Schaitberger also expressed support for tax provisions that enable state and local governments to provide needed public services. Abolishing tax preferences for interest on municipal bonds would cost localities billions of dollars and place additional burdens on already struggling communities. Additionally, he encouraged Congress to retain these important tax provisions because without them “government agencies could be forced to slash basic services.”

As this debate moves forward, the IAFF will continue to work to advocate aggressively towards protecting those tax provisions that support our members and the necessary services they provide.