A Possible Avenue Of Relief Is On The Horizon

Last week, Senator Bill Nelson of Florida, one of the Senators who have taken the lead on the toxic Chinese drywall issue, and a few other Senators working on the issue made public a letter that was sent to the Internal Revenue Service. This letter seeks to clarify whether a tax code section that allows tax payers to deduct property losses suffered as a result of an unexpected event, such as a fire or storm, can apply to losses suffered by homeowners who have been victims of toxic Chinese Drywall. This is obviously the first step in efforts to make sure that this section will eventually apply to these losses. I expect that if the IRS responds by stating that this section does not apply to these losses, then Senator Nelson and others will attempt to change this section of the tax code to accommodate this deduction.

This is a very good development for victims here in Florida and elsewhere. As I have written before, these are the types of efforts that we expect from the government. The Federal government can effectuate this type of change without spending any new money but, at the same time, give some relief to these victims. This along with some sort of law that will protect victims from foreclosure while their toxic homes force them to live outside the home are both steps that can be taken by the government. These are steps that can be effectuated without much effort and without placing our country further into debt.

As an advocate for victims of this tragedy, I do not expect the Federal government to step in and compensate directly homeowners who have been identified as victims. Typically, as I have stated before, this is not the role of the Federal government. Currently, laws are on the books here in Florida that protect fairly well the victims of this defective product. Unlike various other situations where the law is written in favor of the “bad actor”, the law that governs victims of a construction defect is written in favor of the victim. The law provides for relief for these victims and allows for a wide variety of damages – including, but not limited to, the cost of repair, moving expenses, storage expenses, the cost to replace appliances that have been damaged, loss of use of the home, additional living expenses, loss of market value of the home, etc. Since the law is written in favor of the victim, I do not expect a Chinese drywall “bailout”.

Therefore, please call Senator Nelson’s office and support his efforts with regard to the tax code. It is the typ of relief that the government can and, hopefully, will accomplish soon.