Rep. Markwayne Mullin (R-Oklahoma), a member of the Cherokee Nation, was one of the many supporters of H.R.3043, the Tribal General Welfare Exclusion Act. Photo from Sen. Jim Inhofe / Twitter

H.R.3043, the Tribal General Welfare Exclusion Act, awaits action from President Barack Obama after passing the House and the Senate last week.

The bill puts tribes on the same level as states and the federal government when it comes to taxation of general welfare programs. It also suspends Internal Revenue Service enforcement actions that drew outrage across Indian Country.

“They started at the top with the most wealthy tribes and they started auditing them around 2005,” John Dossett, the general counsel for the National Congress of American Indians, told KTOO. “And then they started working their way down the list.”

The bill requires the Department of Treasury to develop new training for agents who work in Indian Country. A Tribal Advisory Committee will be set up to help oversee the training and to advise the Treasury Secretary on taxation issues.

Get the Story:
Tribes advance self-governance initiative with tax bill (KTOO 9/21)
IRS bill regarding tribes heads to Obama (Forum News Service 9/20)
Senate passes tax bill to exempt tribal welfare benefits (The Hill 9/19)

Debate on H.R.3043, the Tribal General Welfare Exclusion Act:

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