U.S. Congressman Bill Cassidy Says “It’s Stupid” To Make U.S. Olympic Medal Winners Pay Taxes On Medals

"It’s stupid to tax the medals our Olympic athletes won. They represent America as ambassadors as well as superior competitors in their sports."

Those are the words of Rep. Bill Cassidy, who has announced his support for Representative Blake Farenthold's (R-TX) legislation, the Tax Exemptions for American Medalists (TEAM) Act, that would exempt U.S. Olympic athletes from paying taxes on medals and prizes awarded to them at the Olympic Games.

"Medal winners in particular are a source of pride to us all," says Cassidy. "The last thing we should do as a government is send them a bill from the IRS when they return home.”

The bill has been reintroduced by Rep. Farenthold after he originally did so in 2012 around the Summer Olympics. In May of 2013, Farenthold spoke with KPEL about his experience in getting to question three whistle-blowers who came forth to testify before Congress about the tragedy at Benghazi.