H.R. 5349
TAS Act
Sponsor: Nathaniel Moran
1 cosponsor
Official summary
Written by the Congressional Research Service.
Tax Court Improvement Act
This bill expands the authority of the U.S. Tax Court to issue subpoenas, authorizes the Tax Court to extend certain petition deadlines, and makes other changes related to Tax Court procedures.
The bill authorizes the Tax Court to issue subpoenas compelling the production of documents and other items from a litigant or witness for evidentiary or discovery purposes (whether or not it is in connection with a scheduled hearing). (Under current law, the Tax Court may issue subpoenas only to compel the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the production of evidence at a scheduled hearing or deposition.)
The bill authorizes the Tax Court to extend (or toll) the deadline to file a Tax Court petition contesting an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) deficiency notice if it is equitable to do so (known as equitable tolling). Further, under the bill, the dismissal of a petition contesting an IRS deficiency notice because the petition is not filed before the deadline and equitable tolling is denied is not treated as a decision of the Tax Court. This allows a subsequent claim to be filed in U.S. district court if certain conditions are met.
The bill also
- expands the type of Tax Court proceedings for which special trial judges may be appointed,
- authorizes Tax Court special trial judges to impose fines up to $5,000 and up to 30 days in jail for contempt of court, and
- requires Tax Court judges and special trial judges to recuse themselves in certain circumstances.
Text of the bill
I Tax Administration and Customer Service
Where this section came from
Not in the first version (Introduced in House, Sep 15).
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Sep 30, 2026 · Engrossed Amendment Senate S.Amdt. 6848: To amend the title. Official page › S.Amdt. 6847: In the nature of a substitute. Official page ›
(a) In general. Section 6751(b) is amended—
(1) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the following:
(1) In general. No penalty under this title shall be assessed, and no disallowance period shall take effect, unless—
(A) the decision (as defined by the Secretary in regulations) to apply such penalty or disallowance period, as applicable, is personally approved (in writing on an electronic form) by—
(i) the immediate supervisor of the individual making such decision, or
(ii) the Internal Revenue Service Office of Servicewide Penalties (or any successor organization), and
(B) the approval described in subparagraph (A) is obtained on or before the date any appealable notice is sent to the taxpayer regarding the application of such penalty or disallowance period.
, and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
(3) Appealable notice. For purposes of this subsection, the term appealable notice means the first written notice issued to a taxpayer that provides the taxpayer an opportunity to—
(A) appeal the decision to the Internal Revenue Service Independent Office of Appeals, or
(B) petition a Federal court for review of the decision.
(b) Disallowance period. Section 6751 is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
(d) Disallowance period
(1) In general. For purposes of this section, the term disallowance period means—
(A) with respect to any credit under section 24, the period determined under section 24(g)(1),
(B) with respect to any credit under section 25A, the period determined under section 25A(b)(4)(A), and
(C) with respect to any credit under section 32, the period determined under section 32(k)(1).
(2) Approval required for disallowance period automatically calculated through electronic means. With respect to the application of any disallowance period, subsection (b)(2)(B) shall not apply.
(c) Effective date. The amendments made by this section shall apply to notices sent after the date which is 12 months after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(d) Report. Not later than 24 months after the date of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall make publicly available a report regarding all penalties assessed by the Internal Revenue Service pursuant to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 during the preceding calendar year, with all relevant data regarding such penalties to be collected and reported with respect to—
(1) every organizational unit of the Internal Revenue Service that has power to assess, abate, or otherwise enforce any penalty imposed by the Internal Revenue Service under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, and
(2) the progression of such penalties at each step of the determination, assessment, and review processes, as well as the final result with respect to such penalties.
II American Citizens Abroad
III Judicial Review
IV Office of the Taxpayer Advocate
V Tax Return Preparers
VI Appeals
VII Whistleblowers
VIII Hostages
IX Small Businesses
X Miscellaneous