I
104TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 3498
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow companies to donate
scientific equipment to elementary and secondary schools for use in
their educational programs, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MAY 21, 1996
Ms. ESHOO (for herself, Mr. MATSUI, Mr. MINGE, and Mr. REED) 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 allow com-
panies to donate scientific equipment to elementary and
secondary schools for use in their educational programs,
and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTIONS OF SCIENTIFIC
EQUIPMENT TO ELEMENTARY AND SECOND-
ARY SCHOOLS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subparagraph (B) of section
170(e)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amend-
ed to read as follows:
‘‘(B) QUALIFIED
RESEARCH
OR
EDU-
CATION CONTRIBUTION.—For purposes of this
paragraph, the term ‘qualified research or edu-
cation contribution’ means a charitable con-
tribution by a corporation of tangible personal
property (including computer software), but
only if—
‘‘(i) the contribution is to—
‘‘(I) an educational organization
described in subsection (b)(1)(A)(ii),
‘‘(II) a governmental unit de-
scribed in subsection (c)(1), or
‘‘(III) an organization described
in section 41(e)(6)(B),
‘‘(ii) the contribution is made not
later than 3 years after the date the tax-
payer acquired the property (or in the case
of property constructed by the taxpayer,
the date the construction of the property is
substantially completed),
‘‘(iii) the property is scientific equip-
ment or apparatus substantially all of the
use of which by the donee is for—
‘‘(I) research or experimentation
(within the meaning of section 174),
or for research training, in the United
States 
in 
physical 
or 
biological
sciences, or
‘‘(II) in the case of an organiza-
tion described in clause (i) (I) or (II),
use within the United States for edu-
cational purposes related to the pur-
pose or function of the organization,
‘‘(iv) the original use of the property
began with the taxpayer (or in the case of
property constructed by the taxpayer, with
the donee),
‘‘(v) the property is not transferred by
the donee in exchange for money, other
property, or services, and
‘‘(vi) the taxpayer receives from the
donee a written statement representing
that its use and disposition of the property
will be in accordance with the provisions of
clauses (iv) and (v).’’
(b) DONATIONS TO CHARITY FOR REFURBISHING.—
Section 170(e)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986
is amended by adding at the end the following new sub-
paragraph:
‘‘(D) DONATIONS TO CHARITY FOR REFUR-
BISHING.—For purposes of this paragraph, a
charitable contribution by a corporation shall be
treated as a qualified research or education con-
tribution if—
‘‘(i) such contribution is a contribu-
tion of property described in subparagraph
(B)(iii) to an organization described in sec-
tion 501(c)(3) and exempt from taxation
under section 501(a),
‘‘(ii) such organization repairs and re-
furbishes the property and donates the
property to an organization described in
subparagraph (B)(i), and
‘‘(iii) the taxpayer receives from the
organization to whom the taxpayer contrib-
uted the property a written statement rep-
resenting that its use of the property (and
any use by the organization to which it do-
nates the property) meets the requirements
of this paragraph.’’
(c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—
(1) Paragraph (4)(A) of section 170(e) of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by strik-
ing ‘‘qualified research contribution’’ each place it
appears and inserting ‘‘qualified research or edu-
cation contribution’’.
(2) The heading for section 170(e)(4) of such
Code is amended by inserting ‘‘OR
EDUCATION’’
after ‘‘RESEARCH’’.
(d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after
December 31, 1995.
SEC. 2. DONATIONS TO UNDERPRIVILEGED SCHOOLS.
It is the sense of Congress that one of the main pur-
poses of the enhanced charitable deduction under section
170(e) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is to encour-
age the donation of computer equipment and supplies to—
(1) schools serving low income communities;
(2) schools whose fiscal year budgets are below
the applicable State-wide norm; and
(3) schools at which student test scores are sub-
stantially below the State-wide norm.
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