H.R. 7998

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7998 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7998

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to extend and expand the 
work opportunity tax credit.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

March 19, 2026

Mr. Bell introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to extend and expand the 
work opportunity tax credit.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Building Reentry and Inclusive 
Development for Greater Employment Act'' or the ``BRIDGE Act''.

SEC. 2. EXTENSION AND EXPANSION OF WORK OPPORTUNITY TAX CREDIT.

(a) Extension of Credit.--Section 51(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue 
Code of 1986 is amended by striking ``December 31, 2025'' and inserting 
``December 31, 2030''.
(b) Expansion of Credit.--
(1) Qualified ex-felon.--Section 51(d)(4) of such Code is 
amended to read as follows:
``(4) Qualified criminal justice-impacted individual.--The 
term `qualified criminal justice-impacted individual' means any 
individual who is certified by the designated local agency--
``(A) as having been--
``(i) convicted of a felony under any 
statute of the United States or any State, or
``(ii) incarcerated in any Federal, State, 
or local correctional institution, or placed on 
probation, for a period of at least 90 days, 
and
``(B) as having a hiring date which is not more 
than 3 years after--
``(i) in the case of an individual to whom 
only clause (i) of subparagraph (A) applies, 
the last date on which such individual was so 
convicted or was released from prison,
``(ii) in the case of an individual to whom 
only clause (ii) of subparagraph (A) applies, 
the last date on which such individual was 
released from such incarceration or was 
discharged from such probation, and
``(iii) in the case of an individual to 
whom both clauses (i) and (ii) of subparagraph 
(A) apply, the later of the dates specified in 
clauses (i) and (ii) of this subparagraph.''.
(2) Qualified opportunity youth.--Section 51(d) of such 
Code is amended by adding at the end the following new 
paragraph:
``(16) Qualified opportunity youth.--The term `qualified 
opportunity youth' means any individual who is certified by the 
designated local agency as being an out-of-school youth (as 
defined in section 129(a)(1)(B) of the Workforce Innovation and 
Opportunity Act).''.
(c) Conforming Amendments.--Section 51(d)(1) of such Code is 
amended--
(1) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``qualified ex-felon'' 
and inserting ``qualified criminal justice-impacted 
individual'',
(2) in subparagraph (I), by striking ``or'',
(3) in subparagraph (J), by striking the period at the end 
and inserting ``, or'', and
(4) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
``(K) a qualified opportunity youth.''.
(d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsections (a), (b), 
and (c) shall apply to individuals who begin work for the employer 
after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(e) Administrative Provisions.--
(1) Regulations by secretary of the treasury.--The 
Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe such regulations or 
other guidance as may be necessary or appropriate to carry out 
the purposes of the amendments made by subsections (a), (b), 
and (c), including by implementing the recommendations 
described in subclauses (I) and (II) of paragraph (2)(B)(i).
(2) Study by comptroller general.--
(A) In general.--The Comptroller General of the 
United States shall conduct a study on the efficiency 
of the administrative process through which employers 
may claim the credit determined under section 51(a) of 
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
(B) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General 
shall submit to Congress and the Secretary of the 
Treasury a report on the study described in 
subparagraph (A), and such report shall include--
(i) recommendations for enhancing the 
efficiency of the administrative process 
referred to in such subparagraph, including 
by--
(I) improving interagency 
coordination and data collection 
procedures for purposes of carrying out 
such administrative process, and
(II) consolidating and simplifying 
any informational requirements on 
employers claiming the credit 
determined under section 51(a) of the 
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, and
(ii) such other information as the 
Comptroller General determines appropriate.
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