Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Congressman Rob Wittman introduced the Telework Tax Incentive Act to reduce traffic congestion and increase worker productivity around the Nation. If passed and signed into law, the bill would provide eligible taxpayers with an annual tax credit for qualified teleworking expenses paid or incurred by the taxpayer that year, up to $1,000. Wittman introduced the legislation after meetings with commuters at slug lines and rail stations in the First Congressional District.

"It's clear that when it comes to commuting and alleviating traffic congestion, there is no silver bullet. A number of constituents made the point that if teleworking were an alternative to going to the office they'd jump at the opportunity as commuters spend an average of 8.5 days of each year on the road", said Wittman.

Additionally, under the introduced bill those who perform services for an employer under a teleworking arrangement where the employee works at least 75 days per year would be eligible to receive the tax credit. The tax credit would be given for expenses such as furnishings and electronic information equipment which folks need in order to telework.

"We've found that congestion on the Nation's roads resulted in costs of over $87,000,000 in 2007, in extra time and fuel used, to drivers in the Nation's 439 urban areas. That's an increase of more than 50% over the previous decade. Adding more cars to the road is not viable for the environment or our infrastructure; teleworking can bring some relief to this issue", added Wittman.

A study by the National Science Foundation found that teleworking increased productivity by 87% and the U.S. Census Bureau reported that 73% of teleworkers felt they accomplished more work on telework days than when they were in the office.

"In 2003, 77 million U.S. workers used a computer at work, that's 55.5% of those employed in the U.S. Passage of this legislation is a win for commuters and companies alike", said Wittman.

Full text of Wittman's legislation can be found here

Congressman Rob Wittman represents the First District of Virginia. He was elected to his first full term in November 2008 and serves on the Natural Resources Committee and the Armed Services Committee where he is the Ranking Member of the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee.