Bill introduced by Rep. Mace would permit deduction of watercraft loan interest

A bill authored by U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace in the U.S. House seeks to allow individuals with qualifying recreational boats to deduct interest paid on personal loans, the U.S. Congress reports.

Designated H.R.7222, the legislation was filed on Jan. 22, 2026 during the regular session of the 119th Congress. The following summary is based on the official bill text, with interpretive language for clarity.

The proposal would update the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 so that watercraft are treated as applicable passenger vehicles, making interest on certain associated loans tax-deductible. “Applicable watercraft” are defined in the bill as recreational motorboats that are first purchased by the taxpayer and produced domestically. To claim the deduction, taxpayers must submit a vehicle identification number for cars or a hull identification number for boats on their tax forms. The regulation would apply to debt initiated after Dec. 31, 2024.

Rep. Nancy Mace (Republican-SC-1st District) is the sole sponsor of this measure.

During the current congressional session, Mace has introduced a total of 64 bills, including this one.

Congressional bills can be introduced in either the U.S. House or the Senate, with the exception of revenue measures, which must begin in the House. Introduced bills go through committee assignment, where they are subject to committee review, hearings, amendments and debate before proceeding to a vote in each chamber. Legislation that passes both chambers in identical form proceeds to the president for approval or veto. Congressional terms last two years and are sequentially numbered and divided into two annual sessions. Congress.gov maintains comprehensive legislative process records and bill texts.

Nancy Mace has represented South Carolina in the U.S. House since January 3, 2021, covering the One Hundred Seventeenth Congress and the following two. She served in the South Carolina state house from 2018 to 2020 and previously ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate in 2014.

Mace is a graduate of The Citadel, where she earned a B.A. in 1999, and received an M.S. from the University of Georgia in 2004. She studied at Trident Technical College and graduated from Stratford High School in 1995.