S.Amdt. 2708

SA 2708. Mr. CASEY (for himself and Mrs. Gillibrand) submitted an amendment intended to be proposed to amendment SA 2699 submitted by Mr. Isakson (for himself and Mr. Dodd) and intended to be proposed to the bill H.R. 3548, to amend the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2008 to provide for the temporary availability of certain additional emergency unemployment compensation, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

Beginning on page 5, line 4, strike all through page 7, line 9, and insert the following:

(a) Age Limitation.--

(1) In general.--Subsection (b) of section 36 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:

“(3) Age limitation.--No credit shall be allowed under subsection (a) with respect to the purchase of any residence unless the taxpayer has attained age 18 as of the date of such purchase and is otherwise not eligible to be claimed as a dependent (as defined in section 152) on another tax return. In the case of any taxpayer who is married (within the meaning of section 7703), the taxpayer shall be treated as meeting the age requirement of the preceding sentence if the taxpayer or the taxpayer's spouse meets such age requirement.”.

(2) Conforming amendment.--Subsection (g) of section 36 of such Code is amended by striking “subsections (c) and (f)(4)(D)” and inserting “subsection (b)(3), (c), and (f)(4)(D)”.

(b) Documentation Requirements.--

(1) In general.--Subsection (d) of section 36 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by striking “or” at the end of paragraph (1), by striking the period at the end of paragraph (2) and inserting a comma, and by adding at the end the following new paragraphs:

“(3) the taxpayer fails to attach to the return of tax for such taxable year a properly executed copy of the settlement statement used to complete such purchase, or

“(4) the taxpayer fails to attach to the return of tax for such taxable year a certified statement of the taxpayer's eligibility for the tax credit issued by the real estate reporting person (as defined in section 6045(e)(2)) with respect to such purchase. Such certified statement shall be issued in such form and manner as prescribed by the Secretary and prepared based on the reasonable facts and circumstances made known to the reporting person from the taxpayer. The reporting person shall not be held liable due to false statements or facts made by the taxpayer, unless such reporting person had reasonable means to determine such statements or facts were false.”.

(2) Ensuring electronic filing.--The Commissioner of Internal Revenue shall develop rules that enable the Internal Revenue Service to enforce the documentation requirements resulting from the amendments made by paragraph (1) without hindering electronic means of filing tax returns.

(c) Restriction on Married Individual Acquiring Residence From Family of Spouse.--Clause (i) of section 36(c)(3)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by inserting “(or, if married, such individual's spouse)” after “person acquiring such property”.

(d) Certain Errors With Respect to the First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit Treated as Mathematical or Clerical Errors.--Paragraph (2) of section 6213(g) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by striking “and” at the end of subparagraph (M), by striking the period at the end of subparagraph (N) and inserting “, and”, and by inserting after subparagraph (N) the following new subparagraph:

“(O) an entry on a return claiming the credit under section 36 if--

“(i) the Secretary obtains information from the person issuing the TIN of the taxpayer that indicates that the taxpayer does not meet the age requirement of section 36(b)(3),

“(ii) information provided to the Secretary by the taxpayer on an income tax return for at least one of the 2 preceding taxable years is inconsistent with eligibility for such credit, or

“(iii) the taxpayer fails to attach to the return the form described in paragraph (3) or (4) of section 36(d).”.

(e) Investigation and Prosecution; Report.--The Commissioner of Internal Revenue shall take such steps as are necessary to investigate and prosecute instances of fraud related to the first-time homebuyer tax credit under section 36 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. The Commissioner of Internal Revenue shall provide reports to Congress on the status of the investigatory and prosecutorial actions not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and quarterly thereafter.

(f) Effective Date.--