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S 2962 116th Congress Senate Taxation Employee benefits and pensions Higher education Income tax deductions Income tax deferral Income tax exclusion Inflation and prices Interest, dividends, interest rates Student aid and college costs

HELPER Act of 2019

Introduced: December 2, 2019 Introduced by: Paul, Rand Republican · Kentucky See on congress.gov
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This bill died when the 116th Congress ended
It never became law before the 116th Congress (2019–2020) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 2 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Dec 2, 2019
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Dec 2, 2019
Introduced in Senate
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 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Higher Education Loan Payment and Enhanced Retirement Act of 2019 or the HELPER Act of 2019

This bill permits annual tax and penalty-free withdrawals of up to $5,250 from 401(k) plans for higher education expenses and penalty-free withdrawals from individual retirement accounts (IRAs) for student loan expenses.

The bill also excludes from gross income, for income tax purposes, distributions up to $5,250 from employer-sponsored student loan and tuition payment plans. It repeals the limitation on the deduction of interest on student loans and increases from $15,000 to $25,000 (adjusted for inflation) the maximum contribution amounts for certain tax-preferred retirement plans.

The bill allows employees an election to treat contributions to a 401(k) plan as Roth contributions (thus exempting withdrawals from such plans from tax at retirement).

What's happening now December 2, 2019

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

 Related & companion bills 1
  • HR 8787 Related bill STAR Act of 2020
 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 1
 Cosponsors 2
All 2 Republican 2
R
Kennedy, John
Louisiana · Dec 4, 2019
 R
Tillis, Thomas
North Carolina · Dec 4, 2019
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). S. 2962: HELPER Act of 2019. 116th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/116-S-2962/
MLA
"S. 2962: HELPER Act of 2019." 116th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/116-S-2962/.
Bluebook (legal)
S. 2962, 116th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/116-S-2962/.
Markdown link
[S. 2962: HELPER Act of 2019](https://openamerica.io/bill/116-S-2962/)
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