Employers Can Provide Tax-Free Disaster Assistance to Employees By Allison Wilkerson, Erin Turley, Robert C. Louthian, III, Rick Stepanovic & McDermott Will & Emery on September 5, 2017 Email this postTweet this postLike this postShare this post on LinkedIn Section 139 of the Internal Revenue Code allows an employer to provide tax-free qualified disaster relief payments to Texas and Louisiana employees in designated areas affected by Hurricane Harvey. Continue reading.