Presidential Tax Transparency Act

To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to require candidates of major parties for the office of President to disclose recent tax return information. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Presidential Tax Transparency Act 2. Disclosure of recent tax returns of certain presidential candidates (a) In general Section 304 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 ( 52 U.S.C. 30104 (j) Disclosure of tax returns of certain presidential candidates (1) In general Each candidate of a major party for the office of President shall file with the Commission, not later than 15 days after such candidate is nominated, a copy of the income tax returns of such candidate for the 3 most recent taxable years for which such a return has been filed with the Internal Revenue Service as of the date of the nomination. (2) Procedure if no information filed In any case in which the candidate of a major party for the office of President has not filed with the Commission the income tax returns described in paragraph (1) before the date which is 30 days after the date such candidate is nominated, the Chairman of the Commission shall request the Secretary of the Treasury to provide such returns. (3) Returns made public A tax return provided to the Commission by a candidate under paragraph (1) or by the Secretary of the Treasury pursuant to paragraph (2) shall be treated in the same manner as a report filed by the candidate and, except as provided in paragraph (4), shall be made publicly available at the same time and in the same manner as other reports and statements under this section. (4) Redaction of certain information Before making any return described in paragraph (1) or (2) available to the public, the Commission shall redact such information as the Commission, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury (or the Secretary's delegate), determines appropriate. (5) Definitions For purposes of this subsection: (A) Major party The term major party section 9002(6) (B) Income tax return The term income tax return section 6103(b)(1) (6) Special rule for 2016 (A) In general In the case of any candidate described in subparagraph (B)— (i) paragraph (1) shall be applied by substituting 7 days after the date of the enactment of this subsection 15 days after such candidate is nominated (ii) paragraph (2) shall be applied by substituting 10 days after the date of the enactment of this subsection 30 days after the date such candidate is nominated (B) Candidate described A candidate is described in this subparagraph if such candidate is the candidate of a major party for the office of President who— (i) is nominated with respect to the regularly scheduled general election for the office of President held in November 2016, and (ii) was so nominated before the date of the enactment of this subsection. . (b) Authority to disclose information (1) In general Section 6103(l) (23) Disclosure of return information of certain presidential candidates by Federal Election Commission (A) In general The Federal Election Commission may disclose to the public the applicable returns of any person who has been nominated as a candidate of a major party (as defined in section 9002(6)) for the office of President. (B) Disclosure to FEC in cases where candidate does not provide returns The Secretary shall, upon written request from the Chairman of the Federal Election Commission pursuant to section 304(j)(2) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, provide to officers and employees of the Federal Election Commission copies of the applicable returns of any person who has been nominated as a candidate of a major party (as defined in section 9002(6)) for the office of President. (C) Applicable returns For purposes of this paragraph, the term applicable returns . (2) Conforming amendments Section 6103(p)(4) of such Code, in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) and in subparagraph (F)(ii), is amended by striking or (22) (22), or (23) (c) Effective date The amendments made by this section shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act. September 19, 2016 Read the second time and placed on the calendar

Summary: Presidential Tax Transparency Act This bill amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to require each candidate of a major party for the office of President to file with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) a copy of the candidate's income tax returns for the three most recent taxable years for which such a return has been filed with the Internal Revenue Service as of the date of the nomination. If a candidate has not filed with the FEC such income tax returns within 30 days after the nomination date, the FEC shall request the Department of the Treasury to furnish the returns. A tax return furnished to the FEC by a candidate or by Treasury shall be treated in the same manner as a report filed by the candidate and, except for the appropriate redaction of certain information, shall be made publicly available at the same time and in the same manner as other reports and statements. The bill sets forth a special rule for disclosure of tax returns in 2016 by a presidential candidate who is nominated for the general election in November 2016 and was so nominated before the enactment of this bill. The bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to authorize the FEC to disclose to the public the applicable tax returns of any person who has been nominated as a candidate of a major party. Treasury shall furnish the FEC with copies of any requested returns.