Senate Republicans Demand Details on How IRS Is Spending $80 Billion Budget Boost

Mark TapscottSeptember 25, 2022

Senate Finance Committee Republicans are demanding that IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig provide detailed answers about how his agency is spending the extra $80 billion it got under President Joe Biden’s 2023 budget.

In a Sept. 22 letter previewing the toughened oversight the IRS will likely face if voters return Republicans to a Senate majority in November’s midterm elections, the 14 GOP lawmakers told Rettig they aren’t interested in “vague plans by Treasury and the IRS on how it may spend” the huge budget increase.

“On Aug. 17, 2022, Treasury Secretary [Janet] Yellen asked you to work with Treasury’s deputy secretary to develop a detailed plan for spending nearly $80 billion in newly enacted mandatory IRS funding, which was part of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). The deadline for the plan is Feb. 17, 2023,” the letter said.

“American taxpayers have a right to know exactly how the IRS will spend their money and a right to fair tax administration.

“As members of the authorizing committee charged with oversight responsibilities over both the IRS and Treasury, we are compelled to ask: how will the IRS fix its numerous existing problems while satisfying the critical need for transparency and accountability?” the letter continued.

The GOP senators said they expect “detailed answers on how the IRS will: (1) prioritize taxpayer services, (2) guard against partisan targeting, (3) protect taxpayer privacy, (4) modernize technology, and (5) track and publish timely and reliable metrics, timelines, and milestones to establish comprehensive transparency and accountability, and allow for meaningful independent oversight.”

Signers of the letter include the finance panel’s top Republican, Sen. Mike Crapo of Idaho, as well as Sens. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, John Cornyn of Texas, John Thune of South Dakota, Richard Burr of North Carolina, Rob Portman of Ohio, Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania, Tim Scott