H. R. 1499
One Hundred Ninth Congress
of the
United States of America 
AT THE SECOND SESSION 
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday, 
the third day of January, two thousand and six 
An Act 
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow members of the Armed 
Forces serving in a combat zone to make contributions to their individual retire-
ment plans even if the compensation on which such contribution is based is 
excluded from gross income, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Heroes Earned Retirement 
Opportunities Act’’. 
SEC. 2. COMBAT ZONE COMPENSATION TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT FOR 
PURPOSES OF DETERMINING LIMITATION AND DEDUCT-
IBILITY OF CONTRIBUTIONS TO INDIVIDUAL RETIRE-
MENT PLANS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (f) of section 219 of the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by redesignating paragraph 
(7) as paragraph (8) and by inserting after paragraph (6) the fol-
lowing new paragraph: 
‘‘(7) SPECIAL RULE FOR COMPENSATION EARNED BY MEMBERS 
OF THE ARMED FORCES FOR SERVICE IN A COMBAT ZONE.—For 
purposes of subsections (b)(1)(B) and (c), the amount of com-
pensation includible in an individual’s gross income shall be 
determined without regard to section 112.’’. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by this section 
shall apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2003.
(c) CONTRIBUTIONS FOR TAXABLE YEARS ENDING BEFORE ENACT-
MENT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of any taxpayer with respect 
to whom compensation was excluded from gross income under 
section 112 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 for any 
taxable year beginning after December 31, 2003, and ending 
before the date of the enactment of this Act, any contribution 
to an individual retirement plan made on account of such 
taxable year and not later than the last day of the 3-year 
period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act 
shall be treated, for purposes of such Code, as having been 
made on the last day of such taxable year. 
(2) WAIVER OF LIMITATIONS.—
(A) CREDIT
OR
REFUND.—If the credit or refund of 
any overpayment of tax resulting from a contribution to 
which paragraph (1) applies is prevented at any time by 
the operation of any law or rule of law (including res 
judicata), such credit or refund may nevertheless be allowed
H. R. 1499—2
or made if the claim therefor is filed before the close 
of the 1-year period beginning on the date that such con-
tribution is made (determined without regard to paragraph 
(1)). 
(B) ASSESSMENT
OF
DEFICIENCY.—The period for 
assessing a deficiency attributable to a contribution to 
which paragraph (1) applies shall not expire before the 
close of the 3-year period beginning on the date that such 
contribution is made. Such deficiency may be assessed 
before the expiration of such 3-year period notwithstanding 
the provisions of any other law or rule of law which would 
otherwise prevent such assessment. 
(3) INDIVIDUAL RETIREMENT PLAN DEFINED.—For purposes 
of this subsection, the term ‘‘individual retirement plan’’ has 
the meaning given such term by section 7701(a)(37) of such 
Code.
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.