,,iv  #aafth ,,congress  #b;d ,session  
,h4 ,,res4 #haj  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of
 ,,representatives  ,january #bg1 #bjbj 
,mr4 ,conaway 7for himself and ,mr4     
,butterfield7 submitted the following   
resolution2 which was referred to the   
,committee on ,ways and ,means          
,,resolution  ,expressing the sense of  
the ,house of ,representatives that the 
,free ,file program has made vital      
contributions to the public4  ,whereas  
the ,free ,file program is an innovative
 public-private partnership between tax 
preparation software companies1 also    
known as the ,free ,file ,alliance1 and 
the ,internal ,revenue ,service 7,,irs7 
to offer free online tax preparation and
 e-filing services to low- and          
moderate-income taxpayers at no cost to 
the ,government2 ,whereas a recent      
independent study over the ,free ,file  
program stated that this critical       
public-private partnership provides     
substantial benefits1 and that without  
this partnership1 the ,,irs would       

sustain prohibitive costs in funding    
such a program itself1 with added risk  
of competing with a highly competitive  
private sector2 ,whereas #ajj1jjj1jjj   
individuals1 or #gj percent of          
taxpayers1 are eligible to qualify for  
the ,free ,file program each year2      
,whereas1 since #bjjc1 over #ec1jjj1jjj 
,american taxpayers have filed their    
taxes for free through the ,free ,file  
program1 saving them over #a1fjj1jjj1jjj
 in tax preparation fees2 ,whereas #bb  
,states and the ,district of ,columbia  
have also created their own ,free ,file 
program modeled after the ,,irs ,free   
,file ,program2 ,whereas the ,free ,file
 program compliments other free tax     
preparation services1 such as the       
,volunteer ,income ,tax ,assistance     
7,,vita7 program1 that work to promote  
the welfare of our ,nation's most       
vulnerable populations2 ,whereas these  
populations that are impacted by ,,vita 
include those who are disabled1 the     
elderly1 and limited ,english-speaking  

taxpayers who need assistance in        
preparing their own tax returns2        
,whereas the ,free ,file program is     
featured on a wide range of tax         
preparation products donated by the best
 known and most trusted industry-leading
 private sector tax preparation         
companies2 ,whereas through these       
donations1 these companies allow        
taxpayers to choose who they file with  
and promote competition within their    
industry2 ,whereas the ,free ,file      
program has also actively engaged in a  
collaborative effort to fight stolen    
identity tax refund fraud through the   
,,irs ,security ,summit2 ,whereas this  
summit consists of the ,,irs1 ,state tax
 agencies1 and various entities from the
 tax industry2 ,whereas the ,security   
,summit consists of #f working groups   
that address identity theft1 and in the 
first #b years after the summit's       
establishment1 the number of reported   
identity theft victims fell by #fe      
percent1 tax returns with confirmed     

identity theft decreased1 and the ,,irs 
withheld #f1jjj1jjj1jjj in fraudulent   
refunds2 and ,whereas the benefits of   
the ,free ,file program have shown that 
the ,free ,file program encourages      
consumer choice and savings for the     
,government1 and promotes strong        
cybersecurity protections for           
individuals filing a tax return3 ,now1  
therefore1 be it ,that the ,house of    
,representatives recognizes the vital   
contributions the ,free ,file program   
has made to the public and fully        
supports the continued success of the   
program4