Congress quietly expands tax breaks for hiring ex-convicts—but workers see no wage guarantee
H.R. 7998 — BRIDGE Act · Filed by Wesley Bell (D-MO) · 1 cosponsor · Introduced Mar 19, 2026 · Referred to committee
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What it does
The BRIDGE Act extends the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (a federal tax break for employers) through 2030 and expands it to cover individuals with criminal convictions or incarceration history, as well as out-of-school youth. Employers who hire someone from these groups within 3 years of their release or conviction can claim a tax credit. The bill also directs the Comptroller General to study how efficiently employers can claim the credit.
Why we flagged it
The bill extends and expands the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) under IRC Section 51, specifically to include individuals with criminal justice involvement and out-of-school youth. Its primary mechanism is a tax credit for employers who hire from these populations.
What the text implies
- The 3-year hiring window after release/conviction may create perverse incentives for employers to cycle through workers rather than invest in long-term employment stability, potentially undermining genuine reentry outcomes.
- Expansion of WOTC to criminal justice-impacted individuals could shift hiring patterns toward this population if the tax credit is sufficiently generous, potentially displacing other disadvantaged groups (e.g., long-term unemployed without criminal records) from entry-level positions.
The full analysis lists 4 implications of this text.
Who stands to gain
Transportation and logistics companies; Manufacturing firms; Retail and hospitality employers