rise to the Presidential declaration described in section 2(1), at the election of the taxpayer, section 165(i)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 shall be applied by substituting any of the 3 taxable years preceding for the taxable year immediately preceding . (b) Special rules (1) Determined without regard to adjusted gross income Any loss described in subsection (a) shall be determined for the taxable year without regard to section 165(h)(2)(A) of such Code. (2) Treated as sale or exchange Notwithstanding section 165(h)(2)(B) of such Code, any loss described in subsection (a) shall be treated as a loss from a sale or exchange of a capital asset. 416. Housing relief for individuals affected by Louisiana storms and flooding (a) Exclusion of employer-Provided housing for individual affected by Louisiana storms and flooding (1) In general Gross income of a qualified employee shall not include the value of any lodging furnished in kind to such employee (and such employee's spouse or any of such employee’s dependents) by or on behalf of a qualified employer for any month during the taxable year. (2) Limitation The amount which may be excluded under paragraph (1) for any month for which lodging is furnished during the taxable year shall not exceed $600. (3) Treatment of exclusion The exclusion under paragraph (1) shall be treated as an exclusion under section 119 of such Code (other than for purposes of sections 3121(a)(19) and 3306(b)(14) of such Code). (b) Employer credit for housing employees affected by Louisiana storms and flooding For purposes of section 38, in the case of a qualified employer, the Louisiana storm and flood housing credit for any month during the taxable year is an amount equal to 30 percent of any amount which is excludable from the gross income of a qualified employee of such employer under subsection (a) and not otherwise excludable under section 119 of such Code. (c) Qualified employee For purposes of this section, the term qualified employee means, with respect to any month, an