(a) Exclusion of employer provided housing for individual affected by Hurricane Katrina
(1) In general
Gross income of a qualified employee shall not include the value of any lodging furnished in-kind to such employee (and such employees spouse or any of such employees dependents) by or on behalf of a qualified employer for any month during the taxable year.
(2) Limitation
The amount which may be excluded under paragraph (1) for any month for which lodging is furnished during the taxable year shall not exceed $600.
(3) Treatment of exclusion The exclusion under paragraph (1) shall be treated as an exclusion under section
119 (other than for purposes of sections
3121 (a)(19) and
3306 (b)(14)).
(b) Employer credit for housing employees affected by Hurricane Katrina For purposes of section
38, in the case of a qualified employer, the Hurricane Katrina housing credit for any month during the taxable year is an amount equal to 30 percent of any amount which is excludable from the gross income of a qualified employee of such employer under subsection (a) and not otherwise excludable under section
119.
(c) Qualified employee For purposes of this section, the term qualified employee means, with respect to any month, an individual
(1) who had a principal residence (as defined in section
121) in the Gulf Opportunity Zone on August 28, 2005, and
(2) who performs substantially all employment services
(A) in the Gulf Opportunity Zone, and
(B) for the qualified employer which furnishes lodging to such individual.
(d) Qualified employer
For purposes of this section, the term qualified employer means any employer with a trade or business located in the Gulf Opportunity Zone.
(e) Certain rules to apply For purposes of this subsection, rules similar to the rules of sections
51 (i)(1) and
52 shall apply.
(f) Application of section This section shall apply to lodging furnished during the period
(1) beginning on the first day of the first month beginning after the date of the enactment of this section, and
(2) ending on the date which is 6 months after the first day described in paragraph (1).
