Get this: MAGA House Republicans don’t think you should be able to file your taxes for free.
And just when we’re starting to finally make some hard-won progress, they want to yank us all the way backward.
You see, for years, I’ve been calling on the IRS to establish a free federal tax filing tool. Last year, Congress passed new funding to help make it happen. The IRS announced that next year, they’ll finally roll out a pilot program to test it — a great first step. But a GOP House bill would stop free filing in its tracks.
You know who’d get hurt by the Republicans’ plan? American taxpayers, who spend an average of $140 to file their taxes. You know who’d get helped? Big tax prep corporations like H&R Block and TurboTax, who hoover up that $140.
Add your name if you agree: the IRS needs to move forward with establishing free tax filing, and we can’t let MAGA House Republicans stop us.
You know, tax prep giants were supposed to offer free services themselves — but they hid them behind deceptive marketing, and they laid tricks and traps to steer taxpayers into costly services.
People get cornered into paying for something that should be free. But that’s not all: they also risk having their personal data shared with other giant corporations.
Last week, I released an investigation showing that big tax prep companies have recklessly shared tens of millions of taxpayers’ sensitive personal and financial data with Meta (a.k.a. the owner of Facebook), Google, and other big tech firms for targeted advertising. It’s a shocking breach of privacy, it may well have broken the law, and I’ll keep working to hold them accountable.
This revelation is yet another reason for the IRS to launch its own free tax filing service so taxpayers don’t have to go through untrustworthy and incompetent tax prep firms.
The federal tax filing process should be fast, easy, and free — and you shouldn’t have to use profiteering, personal-data-sharing middle-men. Add your name if you agree.
Thanks for being a part of this,
Elizabeth
|