On the recordFebruary 12, 2015
I thank the gentleman for yielding. I think we should clarify something. Every day, Americans donate food, clothes, and money to charities. Millions of Americans do that all the time. Most of those Americans don't expect to get something in return. They do it because it is the right thing to do, and it makes them feel like they are part of the American community. So every day Americans are giving. Now, the Tax Code happens to also try to encourage us to do more giving, which I think all of us agree is good. So let's remove that from the debate because I think we are confusing folks who might be watching this. This isn't about trying to give people an incentive to give because Americans are doing it whether or not the Tax Code says to them: We want you to do this. The issue is this. Under the Tax Code, some Americans--not a majority of Americans, not even a third of Americans, but a fraction of Americans--can take advantage of the provisions in the Tax Code that give them tax breaks for having given something. You have heard a discussion about food. If you gave canned goods because the boy next door put up a bag and you put canned goods in there and you gave them away, this provision isn't about that. No. There are a fraction of American taxpayers, mostly companies, restaurants, and so forth, who can take advantage of that. You can't. Americans can't take advantage of that provision. Say you have an IRA, or Individual Retirement Account.…
