Rep. Dina Titus (D-NV) is throwing a last-minute Hail Mary pass to push congressional members to restore the 100 percent gambling loss deduction that was removed through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed by President Donald Trump in July.
But will it fall incomplete?
Titus is using a discharge petition on her FAIR Bet legislation. If successful, a simple majority of House members can take a bill out of committee and onto the floor for consideration when no action has been taken.
The tax provision that goes into effect this year limits gamblers to a 90 percent deduction on their losses. That means a player who wins $100,000 and loses $100,000 will only be able to deduct $90,000 from their winnings, forcing them to pay taxes on $10,000 of essentially phantom income.
“My bill has sat in the Ways and Means Committee for eight months, despite commitments from Republicans to address the issue,” Titus said in a statement last week. “Now, a discharge petition is the needed path to right the fundamental wrong of forcing gamblers to pay taxes on money they never won.”
But will it work?
According to a report by Axios, seven discharge petitions filed in the past two years received the 218 signatures needed for a House vote. In the previous 40 years, just seven petitions received the required number of votes. At the end of the last year, House members used a discharge petition to authorize a three-year extension of the Affordable Care Act tax credits.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) told Axios the petitions were becoming “too common” and he would consider new House rules to make them harder to obtain.
Titus’ bill and similar legislation have found widespread support amongst the gaming industry.