A bill to extend for 5 years a tax provision to encourage employers to provide legal services for their employees.
Public Law 98-612 · H.R. 5361 · 98th Congress · began in the House
Signed by Ronald Reagan (R) on Oct 31, 1984 · Taxation
Sponsor: Rep. Pete Stark (D-CA-9)
Cosponsors (30): Rep. Andrew Jacobs, Rep. Major Owens,
Passage votes
- HouseUnanimous consent
- SenateVoice vote
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
(Senate agreed to House amendment to Senate amendment with an amendment)
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend for one year, until December 31, 1985: (1) the exclusion from gross income of amounts received by an employee from a group legal services plan provided by an employer; and (2) the tax exemption for group legal services organizations.
Requires any employer maintaining a group legal services plan or a cafeteria plan to file an information return with respect to such plan. Specifies the information which must be included in such return. Requires an employer maintaining such a plan to keep records to demonstrate that the plan meets all legal requirements. Provides that the Secretary of the Treasury may require an employer to file an additional return for any year in addition to the information return.
Provides that benefits received from a group legal services plan shall be excluded from the wage base for purposes of railroad retirement taxes.
Amends the Tax Reform Act of 1984 to postpone until July 22, 1985, the increase in the imputed interest rate on certain transactions with deferred payments not exceeding $2,000,000. Provides that where the principal loan amount exceeds $2,000,000, the imputed interest rate will be a "blended" test rate. Requires that interest on farm property under $2,000,000 in loan amount be accounted for on the cash receipts and disbursement method of accounting by both the buyer and the seller.
Provides that the imputed interest rules shall apply to any assumptions of loans with certain exceptions. Provides that the assumptions of loans made before October 15, 1984, will be excepted from the imputed interest rules. Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to prescribe regulations relating to the application of the imputed interest rules to loan assumptions.
Exempts from the imputed interest rules the assumption of loans with respect to a residence, farm, or trade or business unless the terms and conditions of such debt obligations are modified in connection with the assumption.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Ways and Means Committee · House · markup by, referred to, reported bySubcommittee: Tax Subcommittee
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 14 actions.
- Oct 31, 1984Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 98-612.
- Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- Oct 29, 1984PresidentPresident · Presented to President.
- Oct 11, 1984Resolving differencesResolving differences · House Agreed to Senate Amendments to House Amendments to Senate Amendments by Unanimous Consent.
- Resolving differencesResolving differences · Senate concurred in the House amendment to the Senate amendment with an amendment (SP 7127) by Voice Vote.
- Resolving differencesResolving differences · House Concurred, in Senate Amendments , with Amendments by Unanimous Consent.
- FloorFloor · Passed Senate with amendments by Voice Vote.
- Oct 3, 1984FloorFloor · Held at the desk by unanimous consent.
- Oct 1, 1984FloorFloor · Passed House (Amended) by Yea-Nay Vote: 300 - 87 (Record Vote No: 426).House roll call 426
- Sep 24, 1984CommitteeCommittee · Reported by House Ways and Means Committee
- Sep 19, 1984CommitteeCommittee · Markup by House Ways and Means Committee
- Apr 6, 1984CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Tax Subcommittee of the House Ways and Means Committee
- Apr 4, 1984CommitteeCommittee · Referred to House Ways and Means Committee
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in the House
Data notes
Shows the introduction, each committee and subcommittee step the source dates (referral, hearings, markup, report, discharge), and the floor, conference, presidential and became-law steps. Calendar placements, messages between the chambers, amendments and committee report numbers are not shown for laws before the 108th Congress. Two entries the source lists twice are shown once.
Official record
The bill’s full text and every action, including introduction and committee steps, are on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.