Small Tax Case Threshold Modernization Act
Sponsored By: Senator Cornyn, John [R-TX]
Introduced
Summary
This bill would raise the Tax Court's small-case threshold from $50,000 to $100,000 and create an automatic inflation adjustment so the cap keeps pace with cost‑of‑living changes.
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- Taxpayers and small businesses would be able to use the Tax Court's simpler small-case process for disputes up to $100,000, expanding access to faster, less formal resolution. This change applies to cases filed in a calendar year beginning after 2026.
- Tax Court administration would reclassify and retitle the relevant rules and table entries to cover "small disputes" instead of disputes limited to $50,000, moving more cases into the small-case track.
- Tax attorneys and litigants would see the $100,000 amount automatically increase each year by a cost-of-living adjustment based on the Tax Code's COLA formula with 2025 as the base year, and each increase would be rounded down to the nearest $1,000.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
1 provisions identified: 1 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.
Higher small-case tax limit for taxpayers
If enacted, this would let you take a Tax Court small-case petition for disputes up to $100,000 instead of $50,000. For petitions or appeals filed in calendar years beginning after 2026, the $100,000 limit would increase each year by the cost-of-living adjustment under section 1(f)(3) using calendar year 2025 as the base. Any computed increase that is not a multiple of $1,000 would be rounded down to the next lower $1,000. These amendments would apply to proceedings that start after the date of enactment.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Cornyn, John [R-TX]
TX • R
Cosponsors
Sen. Luján, Ben Ray [D-NM]
NM • D
Sponsored 7/22/2026
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
View on Congress.gov