WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump signed into law Sens. John Kennedy (R-La.) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.)’s bipartisan Filing Relief for Natural Disasters Act, which will provide relief for taxpayers in states that have issued state-level disaster declarations.

“I’m grateful to President Trump for signing our bipartisan Filing Relief for Natural Disasters Act into law. Louisianians recovering from hurricanes and other disasters shouldn’t have to wait on Washington to get the tax extensions they need. This law will make sure hard-hit communities can get necessary tax relief without delay,” said Kennedy.

“When a natural disaster strikes, hard-hit families looking for tax relief shouldn’t have to wait for the federal government to act. This commonsense bill will ensure that taxpayers who have been through state emergencies can get the flexibility from the IRS that they deserve while recovering,” said Cortez Masto.

Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) also cosponsored the bill.

“The last thing Tennesseans should have to worry about when a natural disaster like Hurricane Helene strikes is meeting a tax-filing deadline. Now that President Trump has signed our bipartisan Tax Relief for Natural Disasters Act into law, Americans impacted by natural disasters will have the flexibility to focus on recovery, not tax paperwork,” said Blackburn.

Prior to the bill’s signing, the Internal Revenue Service had the authority to postpone tax filing deadlines following a presidentially declared federal disaster but not following a state-level emergency declaration. 

The Filing Relief for Natural Disasters Act allows the governor of a state or territory to extend a federal tax filing deadline following a state-declared emergency or natural disaster without waiting for a federal disaster declaration. 

This change will enable states to provide federal tax extensions independent of the federal government’s involvement in an emergency or natural disaster.

The law also expands the mandatory federal filing extension from 60 days to 120 days. 

The full bill text is available here.