Committee hears Senate Bill 9 to conform Ohio tax code to recent federal disaster-relief changes

Senate Bill 9, a housekeeping measure to align Ohio tax law with recent federal changes, received its first hearing before the Senate Ways and Means Committee.

Sponsor Senator Blessing described the bill as routine conformity: it incorporates Internal Revenue Code changes enacted after March 15, 2023, into Ohio law so taxpayers do not face conflicting calculations for federal adjusted gross income on state returns. “This bill is simple housekeeping,” Blessing said in opening remarks, adding the measure implements changes from the Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2023 (H.R. 5863, 118th Congress).

Sponsor and Department of Taxation testimony focused on one notable federal change the bill would mirror: the exclusion from gross income of qualified disaster relief payments tied to the East Palestine train derailment on Feb. 3, 2023. Adam Schwiebert, legislative director for the Ohio Department of Taxation, told the committee that without conformity taxpayers would need to make additional adjustments on state returns and that such calculations could introduce complexity and possible taxpayer errors.

Schwiebert said preserving a single starting point—the federal adjusted gross income reported on federal Form 1040—“greatly simplifies preparation and administration of state income tax for taxpayers, tax preparers, state tax officials, and school districts that impose income taxes.” He noted the committee previously addressed an Ohio-specific deduction for those payments in House Bill 33 of the prior General Assembly.

Senators received the Department of Taxation and written proponent testimony from the Ohio Society of CPAs. Committee members did not take a vote at this hearing; sponsors said the Department would provide technical details as the bill proceeds through the legislative process.