What This Bill Does
This bill allows people to treat money spent on fitness, exercise and physical activity as medical expenses on their taxes. The bill aims to promote healthier lifestyles and help people afford fitness activities.
Who It Affects
Taxpayers (people who file tax returns) and their families who pay for fitness and exercise expenses.
Key Provisions
* Amounts paid for fitness facility memberships, instruction in physical exercise, and exercise equipment can now be treated as medical expenses for tax purposes (Sec. 3(b)(A)).
* Taxpayers can deduct up to $1,000 per year in qualified fitness expenses, or up to $2,000 per year if filing a joint return or as head of household (Sec. 3(b)(B)).
* Fitness facilities must provide physical exercise programs or instruction, cannot be private clubs owned by members, and cannot include golf, hunting, sailing or riding facilities to qualify (Sec. 3(b)(C)).
* Single items of sports equipment (other than exercise equipment) are limited to $250 per item to count as a qualified fitness expense (Sec. 3(b)(E)).
* Exercise videos, books and similar materials count as qualified expenses if they teach physical exercise or physical activity (Sec. 3(b)(D)).
What Changes
People will be able to claim money spent on fitness memberships, exercise instruction and fitness equipment as medical expenses when calculating their taxes, subject to the yearly dollar limits and restrictions described above.
Important Definitions
* Qualified sports and fitness expenses: money paid solely for fitness facility memberships, instruction in physical exercise or activity, or equipment used in exercise or physical activity programs (Sec. 3(b)(A)).
* Fitness facility: a place that provides physical exercise instruction and facilities but is not a private members club and does not have golf, hunting, sailing or riding facilities (Sec. 3(b)(C)).
Effective Date
Taxable years beginning after the date the bill is signed into law.
II
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
S. 786
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 14, 2023
Mr. THUNE (for himself, Mr. MURPHY, Mr. CRAMER, Mr. TILLIS, Mr. MAR-
SHALL, Mrs. CAPITO, Mr. WICKER, Mr. SCOTT of South Carolina, Ms.
BALDWIN, Ms. SINEMA, and Mr. KING) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee 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 2023’’ or the ‘‘PHIT Act of 2023’’.
5
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•S 786 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
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•S 786 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
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•S 786 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—
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•S 786 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
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