John,

2023 was one of the smoothest tax seasons in recent years. Why? Because, thanks to investments in the IRS, the agency is finally improving call wait times and reducing its backlog in processing paper tax returns.

What was Congress’ response? House Republicans voted to gut funding for the IRS and even introduced a bill to abolish the agency entirely. But they’re not done.

House Republicans now want to cut IRS funding by over $1 billion in this years’ budget, plus an additional two-year $20 billion cut Kevin McCarthy demanded in debt ceiling negotiations, which will limit the IRS’s capacity to go after wealthy and corporate tax cheats. This is part of a long term plan to weaken the IRS and make it easier for the richest 1% to dodge taxes.

Because tax returns for the wealthy and corporations are so complex, it takes agents months -- and even years -- to audit them. But, due to disinvestments in the IRS between 2010 and 2017, audit rates on millionaires and corporations had previously dropped by 71% and 54% respectively.^1,2 Instead of cuts to the IRS, we’re demanding Congress invest in the agency to crack down on rich tax cheats.

Click here to send a message to Congress to invest in, not cut, IRS funding in this year’s budget.

When Congress invests in the IRS, it allows the agency to audit wealthy tax dodgers, with the recovered income far exceeding the cost of the audit by more than 2 to 1.³

Think of what we could fund with those extra tax dollars. Nutrition programs, housing assistance, early education, services for people with disabilities, the aging, and so much more.

The Senate Appropriations Committee is taking up their IRS funding bill next week. They must hear from us about why investing funding in the IRS is so important. Not only will cracking down on tax cheats leave us with billions of dollars to invest in our communities, it will also continue to make tax season smoother for law-abiding people who pay their fair share.

Send a direct message to Congress today to urge them to invest in -- not cut -- IRS funding.

Thank you for all you do,

Meredith Dodson
Senior Director of Public Policy, Coalition on Human Needs

¹ Congress Needs to Take Two Steps to Fund the IRS for the Short and Long Term
² Wyden Hearing Statement on House Republican IRS Funding Cuts Undermining Law Enforcement and Taxpayer Service
³ How much did Congress lose by defunding the IRS? Way more than we thought.

-- DEBORAH'S MESSAGE --

John,

The wealthy and large corporations exploit tax loopholes and dodge taxes to avoid paying $1 trillion in taxes each year, according to Charles Rettig, the former commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service.¹ And it seems that Speaker Kevin McCarthy and members of the House of Representatives are just fine with that.

In their first order of business this session, House Republicans voted to rescind $72 billion of the $80 billion of investments the agency received as part of the Inflation Reduction Act. When their plan was DOA in the Senate, Speaker McCarthy demanded a two-year $20 billion cut in IRS funding in the debt ceiling agreement. And now, in addition, the House Appropriations Committee has put forward a plan that cuts more than $1 billion in IRS funding from the previous year’s budget.

These draconian cuts would only serve one purpose: to weaken the IRS and prevent them from hiring more agents who will go after wealthy and corporate tax cheats. Send a direct message to Congress demanding they invest in -- not cut -- IRS funding!

Cutting IRS funding by $1 billion -- or 9% -- from last year would undermine the IRS’ capacity to collect taxes already owed from those with high incomes, along with limiting the IRS’s ability to serve everyday taxpayers, who have faced egregiously long hold times for phone calls and a significantly longer time processing and paying out tax refunds.

We cannot continue to allow a small, wealthy minority to get out of paying their fair share in taxes when most of us pay taxes with every paycheck.

Call on Congress to increase funding to the IRS so they can crack down on wealthy and corporate tax cheats.

Thank you for all you do for a more equitable economy,

Deborah Weinstein
Executive Director, Coalition on Human Needs

¹Tax cheats cost the U.S. $1 trillion per year, I.R.S. chief says.