Two congressmen from opposite sides of the aisle on Monday introduced yet more legislation to undo a provision in President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) that would potentially require gamblers to pay taxes even if they lost more money than they won.
Rep. Steven Horsford, a Nevada Democrat, and Rep. Max Miller, an Ohio Republican, pre-filed HR 6985, a clone of the Senate’s FULL HOUSE Act. The bill would restore a decades-old rule allowing gamblers to deduct 100% of their losses against their winnings when filing taxes.
A last-minute addition to Republicans’ sweeping tax package, the OBBBA cut that deduction to 90%. Under the new rule, a gambler who wins $10,000 but also loses $10,000 would still owe taxes on $1,000, money they never actually won.
“Taxing people on money they never actually earned is fundamentally unfair and harmful to Nevada’s economy,” Horsford said in a statement. “This policy would drive tourism across our state elsewhere. There is strong bipartisan agreement that this provision was a mistake, and Congress must act to correct it.”
Both parties agree
The OBBBA change has drawn criticism from the gaming industry and lawmakers from both parties who argue it amounts to taxing phantom income.
“The FULL HOUSE Act is about basic fairness in the tax code,” Miller said. “Americans should not be taxed on money they didn’t actually take home. By restoring the full deduction for gambling losses, this bill ensures the IRS treats taxpayers honestly and consistently. I’m proud to lead this bipartisan effort with Congressman Horsford, and I urge my colleagues to support this common-sense fix.”
The FULL HOUSE Act (Facilitating Useful Loss Limitations to Help Our Unique Service Economy) would amend the Internal Revenue Code to reinstate the previous deduction rules. If passed, the change would apply to tax years beginning after Dec. 31, 2025.
The bill has been referred to committee, though its path forward remains uncertain. Both sponsors expressed confidence that bipartisan support exists to fix what they clearly believe to be a mistake in the larger tax package.
In addition to the FULL HOUSE Act and Horsford’s and Miller’s resolution, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have signed on in support of U.S. Rep. Dina Titus’ FAIR Bet Act, which would accomplish the same goal of restoring the loss deduction to 100%.
