John,

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently announced a new tax filing software that will go live for a select group of taxpayers in 2024. This question-based software will allow people to send their returns electronically to the government for free!

If broadly available, this software would allow Americans to avoid profit-hungry companies that act as middlemen when we file our taxes online.

But corporations like H&R Block and Intuit (the owners of TurboTax) are pushing back. And now, House Republicans have attached a rider to a funding bill that would prohibit the IRS from developing free tax filing software that would allow any taxpayer to file their taxes for free.

We can’t let corporate greed get in the way of performing a civic duty. The IRS must be allowed to develop free tax filing software for all. Add your name to demand free, online tax filing software be available to all taxpayers through the federal government, not through corporations that always put profits over human need.

More than 20 years ago, a compromise was struck between the IRS and private tax preparation companies including Intuit and H&R Block, that would allow low-income taxpayers a free file option, and in return, the IRS would scrap plans to create their own free file program.¹

Not surprisingly, this public-private partnership benefitted the tax preparers more than it did low-income taxpayers. That’s because private tax preparation companies were pulling dirty tricks to mislead taxpayers such as hiding the Free File landing page from online search engines and creating their own “free” edition of their software that misguided consumers and often led them into paying as much as $200.²

Americans shouldn’t have to pay profit-hungry companies in order to use a program to file taxes online. 36 industrialized countries including Germany, the United Kingdom, and Spain all use free tax return filing programs.³

It’s time the United States catches up with the rest of the world and provides a free tax filing system for all U.S. taxpayers.

Add your name to tell the IRS that you support free direct tax filing software that everyone can use.

Thank you for all you do,

Deborah Weinstein
Executive Director, Coalition on Human Needs

¹ The IRS has a big opportunity to fix the way Americans file taxes
² IRS Reforms Free File Program, Drops Agreement Not to Compete With TurboTax
³ How Could We Improve the Federal Tax System?