Termination of Tax-Exempt Status of Terrorist Supporting Organizations

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 6408, and I am proud to support this important legislation today and proud that it is being brought to the floor in a bipartisan way. I am proud to have worked to bring this to the floor with my fellow Ways and Means colleague, Representative David Kustoff from Tennessee.

As was mentioned, this past weekend, Iran launched an unprecedented attack on Israel, for the very first time from Iranian territory, firing cruise and ballistic missiles as well as suicide attack drones.

Thankfully, again as was noted, a coalition of U.S., U.K., Jordanian, French, and other allies, coordinated a remarkable defense, defeating 99 percent of the missiles and drones before they were able to reach their intended targets. This achievement reflects the power of alliances, alliances we have worked incredibly hard to build and need to work to always maintain.

Iran, on the other hand, is aligned with groups such as Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza, the Houthis in Yemen, and militias in Iraq and Syria. Iran is the world's largest state sponsor of terrorism, backing a broad group of terrorist organizations in the region and across the world.

In fact, just last week, a court in Argentina concluded that it was Iran that planned the fatal attack against a Jewish community center in 1994, 30 years ago, and the court declared it a crime against humanity.

The alliances we create must be able to stand up to the horrific alliances that Iran is trying to build. That is why this legislation is so important.

As the attacks of October 7 highlighted, we must be doing everything we can to assist allies like Israel, to disempower the enemies who seek to do not just our allies harm, in the case of Hamas to destroy the Jewish state and kill the Jewish people, but to also attack the United States. This was made even clearer this weekend when Iran launched its multifaceted assault on Israel.

That is why Speaker Johnson must bring the Senate-passed legislation providing for Israeli security assistance as well as funding to help our allies in Ukraine and Taiwan. We have to have the Senate bill come to the House floor for a vote so it can immediately go to the President's desk for signature to assist these allies who are facing these threats. The Senate passed it in a deeply bipartisan vote, and I have no doubt it would have the votes to pass in the House, if the Speaker would just bring it to the floor.

We cannot dither or wait. The Iranian attacks over the weekend demonstrate the serious urgency with which we must act. Anything less than the passage of the Senate-passed aid bill will be grossly insufficient.

As members of the House Ways and Means Committee, it is our job to be good stewards of the tax code, to ensure its faithful enforcement and to empower the Treasury Department to go after tax cheats.

As my colleague mentioned, we must look into the acts of groups like the Holy Land Foundation and others who are potentially providing material support for terrorist groups. We must do everything we can to cut off financing for groups like Hamas and other terrorist organizations, and errant nonprofit organizations have been prosecuted for funneling money to Hamas and others.

These organizations must be held accountable for providing material support to terrorist organizations. As this legislation makes clear, these organizations must never be allowed to enjoy the privilege of tax-exempt status.

Financiers who exploit tax-exempt status to hide their nefarious work behind nonprofit organizations must be held accountable. Doing so plays an important role in our work to combat the financing of terrorist organizations like Hamas.

This bill ensures the Treasury Department has the tools necessary to do exactly that, while also providing thoughtful safeguards to protect due process. That is why I am proud to be able to bring this bill to the floor today.
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Mr. SCHNEIDER. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I yield myself the balance of my time to close.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend, John Larson, for his passionate words and his urgent plea to pass the essential national security legislation that will bring aid to our allies in Ukraine, in Israel, and in Taiwan.

Enjoying tax exempt status under section 501 of the tax code is indeed a privilege. As good stewards of the U.S. tax code, it is our duty to ensure the Treasury Department has the tools it needs to enforce this section.

At a time of great threat to our allies, and, in particular, to Israel from Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran, we must exercise all powers that are at our disposal to constrain funding for these terrorist organizations, including combating errant nonprofit organizations based here in the United States who provide material support for these groups overseas.

I, again, thank my colleague, Representative Kustoff, for his partnership and work on this legislation. I thank Ranking Member Neal and Chairman Smith for their leadership.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to not only support this legislation but also, as we have said, to support the essential security funding that came from the Senate.

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