PHIT Act of 2019

II 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 680 To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to treat certain amounts paid for physical activity, fitness, and exercise as amounts paid for medical care. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MARCH 6, 2019 Mr. THUNE (for himself, Mr. MURPHY, Mr. BARRASSO, Mrs. CAPITO, Mr. KING, Mr. ROUNDS, Mr. WICKER, Mr. PETERS, and Mr. ISAKSON) intro- duced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Com- mittee on Finance A BILL To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to treat cer- tain amounts paid for physical activity, fitness, and exer- cise as amounts paid for medical care. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Personal Health In- 4 vestment Today Act of 2019’’ or the ‘‘PHIT Act of 2019’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:45 Mar 15, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S680.IS S680 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •S 680 IS SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 1 The purpose of this Act is to promote health and pre- 2 vent disease, particularly diseases related to being over- 3 weight or obese, by— 4 (1) encouraging healthier lifestyles; 5 (2) providing financial incentives to ease the fi- 6 nancial burden of engaging in healthy behavior; and 7 (3) increasing the ability of individuals and 8 families to participate in physical fitness activities. 9 SEC. 3. CERTAIN AMOUNTS PAID FOR PHYSICAL ACTIVITY, 10 FITNESS, AND EXERCISE TREATED AS 11 AMOUNTS PAID FOR MEDICAL CARE. 12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (1) of section 213(d) 13 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by strik- 14 ing ‘‘or’’ at the end of subparagraph (C), by striking the 15 period at the end of subparagraph (D) and inserting ‘‘, 16 or’’, and by inserting after subparagraph (D) the following 17 new subparagraph: 18 ‘‘(E) for qualified sports and fitness ex- 19 penses.’’. 20 (b) QUALIFIED SPORTS AND FITNESS EXPENSES.— 21 Subsection (d) of section 213 of the Internal Revenue 22 Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the fol- 23 lowing new paragraph: 24 ‘‘(12) QUALIFIED SPORTS AND FITNESS EX- 25 PENSES.— 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:45 Mar 15, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S680.IS S680 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •S 680 IS ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘qualified 1 sports and fitness expenses’ means amounts 2 paid exclusively for the sole purpose of partici- 3 pating in a physical activity including— 4 ‘‘(i) for membership at a fitness facil- 5 ity, 6 ‘‘(ii) for participation or instruction in 7 physical exercise or physical activity, or 8 ‘‘(iii) for equipment used in a pro- 9 gram (including a self-directed program) of 10 physical exercise or physical activity. 11 ‘‘(B) OVERALL DOLLAR LIMITATION.—The 12 aggregate amount treated as qualified sports 13 and fitness expenses with respect to any tax- 14 payer for any taxable year shall not exceed 15 $1,000 ($2,000 in the case of a joint return or 16 a head of household (as defined in section 17 2(b))). 18 ‘‘(C) FITNESS FACILITY.—For purposes of 19 subparagraph (A)(i), the term ‘fitness facility’ 20 means a facility— 21 ‘‘(i) which provides instruction in a 22 program of physical exercise, offers facili- 23 ties for the preservation, maintenance, en- 24 couragement, or development of physical 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:45 Mar 15, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S680.IS S680 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •S 680 IS fitness, or serves as the site of such a pro- 1 gram of a State or local government, 2 ‘‘(ii) which is not a private club owned 3 and operated by its members, 4 ‘‘(iii) which does not offer golf, hunt- 5 ing, sailing, or riding facilities, 6 ‘‘(iv) the health or fitness component 7 of which is not incidental to its overall 8 function and purpose, and 9 ‘‘(v) which is fully compliant with the 10 State of jurisdiction and Federal anti-dis- 11 crimination laws. 12 ‘‘(D) TREATMENT OF EXERCISE VIDEOS, 13 ETC.—Videos, books, and similar materials 14 shall be treated as described in subparagraph 15 (A)(ii) if the content of such materials con- 16 stitutes instruction in a program of physical ex- 17 ercise or physical activity. 18 ‘‘(E) LIMITATIONS RELATED TO SPORTS 19 AND FITNESS EQUIPMENT.—Amounts paid for 20 equipment described in subparagraph (A)(iii) 21 shall be treated as qualified sports and fitness 22 expenses only— 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:45 Mar 15, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S680.IS S680 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •S 680 IS ‘‘(i) if such equipment is utilized ex- 1 clusively for participation in fitness, exer- 2 cise, sport, or other physical activity, 3 ‘‘(ii) in the case of amounts paid for 4 apparel or footwear, if such apparel or 5 footwear is of a type that is necessary for, 6 and is not used for any purpose other 7 than, a specific physical activity, and 8 ‘‘(iii) in the case of amounts paid for 9 any single item of sports equipment (other 10 than exercise equipment), to the extent 11 such amounts do not exceed $250. 12 ‘‘(F) PROGRAMS WHICH INCLUDE COMPO- 13 NENTS OTHER THAN PHYSICAL EXERCISE AND 14 PHYSICAL ACTIVITY.—Rules similar to the rules 15 of paragraph (6) shall apply in the case of any 16 program that includes physical exercise or phys- 17 ical activity and also other components. For 18 purposes of the preceding sentence, travel and 19 accommodations shall be treated as a separate 20 component.’’. 21 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 22 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after 23 the date of the enactment of this Act. 24 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:45 Mar 15, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S680.IS S680 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS