S. 2976 · Where this bill is now
In committee
Introduced in the Senate, Oct 6, 2025
What this bill does
In plain words · AI-written from the official summaryTaxes outsourced jobs, funds workforce programs
This bill adds a 25% federal tax on payments that U.S. companies make to foreign workers or contractors for labor that serves American consumers. Companies would also lose the ability to deduct these outsourcing payments from their taxes. The money collected from this tax would go into a new Domestic Workforce Fund to pay for job training, apprenticeships, and support for communities hit hard by outsourcing.
How it affects you
If you work in industries affected by outsourcing, you might benefit from new job training and apprenticeship programs funded by the bill. Business owners who use foreign contractors for work serving U.S. customers would face higher costs and lose certain tax deductions. The bill asks the IRS to track outsourcing payments and penalizes companies that don't report them.
Read the official summary (Introduced in Senate, Oct 6, 2025)
Halting International Relocation of Employment Act or the HIRE Act
This bill imposes a 25% federal excise tax on and disallows tax deductions related to payments made to foreign persons for labor or services benefiting consumers in the United States (outsourcing payments). The bill also provides funding for workforce development initiatives.
Specifically, the excise tax applies to outsourcing payments , which the bill defines as any premium, fee, royalty, service charge, or other payment made
• in the course of a trade or business,
• to a foreign person (excluding a corporation or partnership organized under the laws of the United States or a U.S. possession), and
• for labor or services which benefit (directly or indirectly) U.S. consumers.
Further, a federal tax deduction is not allowed for outsourcing payments or the excise tax on such payments.
Under the bill, the Internal Revenue Service may require persons to report information related to outsourcing payments. The bill imposes penalties for failing to report such information or pay the excise tax.
The bill also establishes and provides funding for the Domestic Workforce Fund, which is to be used for
• workforce development and retraining programs,
• apprenticeship programs and partnerships with industry to expand domestic employment in sectors impacted by outsourcing, and
• state grants for workforce development for communities with high levels of job displacement.
The funding provided by the bill for the Domestic Workforce Fund is equivalent to the amounts received from the tax and penalties imposed by the bill.
Written by AI (Claude) using only the official summary by the Congressional Research Service, the Library of Congress’s nonpartisan research staff. It can miss nuance, so check the official summary and the bill text for details.
1st SessionS. 2976
A BILL
HIRE Act
Sponsor: Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH) · Introduced Oct 6, 2025 · Taxation · 1 version of the text
Sources: Congress.gov actions and votes · bill text from GovInfo · latest official action Oct 6, 2025: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.”