I
105TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 19
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide a deduction for
higher education expenses.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JANUARY 7, 1997
Mr. POMEROY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Ways and Means
A BILL
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide
a deduction for higher education expenses.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Education and Train-
ing Affordability Act of 1997’’.
SEC. 2. DEDUCTION FOR HIGHER EDUCATION EXPENSES.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Part VII of subchapter B of chap-
ter I of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to
additional itemized deductions for individuals) is amended
by redesignating section 221 as section 222 and by insert-
ing after section 220 the following new section:
‘‘SEC. 221. HIGHER EDUCATION TUITION AND FEES.
‘‘(a) ALLOWANCE OF DEDUCTION.—In the case of an
individual, there shall be allowed as a deduction the
amount of qualified higher education expenses paid by the
taxpayer during the taxable year.
‘‘(b) LIMITATIONS.—
‘‘(1) DOLLAR
LIMITATION.—The amount al-
lowed as a deduction under subsection (a) for any
taxable year shall not exceed $5,000 ($2,500 in the
case of a married individual filing separately).
‘‘(2) LIMITATION
BASED
ON
MODIFIED
AD-
JUSTED GROSS INCOME.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The dollar limitation
which would (but for this paragraph) be taken
into account under paragraph (1) shall be re-
duced (but not below zero) by the amount de-
termined under subparagraph (B).
‘‘(B) 
AMOUNT
OF
REDUCTION.—The
amount determined under this subparagraph
equals the amount which bears the same ratio
to such dollar limitation as—
‘‘(i) the excess (if any) of—
‘‘(I) the taxpayer’s modified ad-
justed gross income for such taxable
year, over
‘‘(II) $60,000 ($80,000 in the
case of a joint return), bears to
‘‘(ii) $15,000.
‘‘(C) MODIFIED
ADJUSTED
GROSS
IN-
COME.—For purposes of subparagraph (B), the
term ‘modified adjusted gross income’ means
the adjusted gross income of the taxpayer for
the taxable year determined—
‘‘(i) without regard to this section and
sections 911, 931, and 933, and
‘‘(ii) after the application of sections
86, 135, 219, and 469.
For purposes of sections 86, 135, 219, and
469, adjusted gross income shall be determined
without regard to the deduction allowed under
this section.
‘‘(c) QUALIFIED HIGHER EDUCATION EXPENSES.—
For purposes of this section—
‘‘(1) QUALIFIED
HIGHER
EDUCATION
EX-
PENSES.—
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The term ‘qualified
higher education expenses’ means tuition and
fees charged by an educational institution and
required for the enrollment or attendance of—
‘‘(i) the taxpayer,
‘‘(ii) the taxpayer’s spouse, or
‘‘(iii) any dependent of the taxpayer
with respect to whom the taxpayer is al-
lowed a deduction under section 151,
as an eligible student at an institution of higher
education.
‘‘(B) EXCEPTION FOR EDUCATION INVOLV-
ING SPORTS, ETC.—Such term does not include
expenses with respect to any course or other
education involving sports, games, or hobbies,
unless such expenses—
‘‘(i) are part of a degree program, or
‘‘(ii) are deductible under this chapter
without regard to this section.
‘‘(C) 
EXCEPTION
FOR
NONACADEMIC
FEES.—Such term does not include any student
activity fees, athletic fees, insurance expenses,
or other expenses unrelated to a student’s aca-
demic course of instruction.
‘‘(D) ELIGIBLE STUDENT.—For purposes
of subparagraph (A), the term ‘eligible student’
means a student who—
‘‘(i) meets the requirements of section
484(a)(1) of the Higher Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1091(a)(1)), as in effect
on the date of the enactment of this sec-
tion, and
‘‘(ii)(I) is carrying at least one-half
the normal full-time work load for the
course of study the student is pursuing, as
determined by the institution of higher
education, or
‘‘(II) is enrolled in a course which en-
ables the student to improve the student’s
job skills or to acquire new job skills.
‘‘(E) IDENTIFICATION REQUIREMENT.—No
deduction shall be allowed under subsection (a)
to a taxpayer with respect to an eligible student
unless the taxpayer includes the name, age, and
taxpayer identification number of such eligible
student on the return of tax for the taxable
year.
‘‘(2) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—
The term ‘institution of higher education’ means an
institution which—
‘‘(A) is described in section 481 of the
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C.