Many of you may not be familiar with the name Chip Baltimore. Chip, a Senior Fellow with the Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA), works on telecom issues for us in the Midwest. Chip monitors government owned (i.e., taxpayer funded) broadband systems. This week Chip sent a letter warning West Des Moines (Iowa) Mayor and City Council about the cost increases of the local taxpayer-funded system. The cost has skyrocketed from $42 million to $60 million, a 43 percent increase. In part, the letter read, “And to cover this additional cost, you are placing the burden squarely on the shoulders of your property taxpayers through the issuance of general obligation bonds. At a time when the State of Iowa is looking to lower taxes for all Iowans, the City of West Des Moines is looking to increase taxes for all of its property owners.” There is a lot more drama to unfold in Iowa (and around the country) with taxpayer-funded broadband so be sure to follow us on Twitter and Facebook for all the latest.
The IRS Wants Selfies and More Power
A report surfaced last week that starting in the Summer of 2022 (yes, just a few months away) the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will require a picture/selfie to access certain tax information. IRS officials say they are doing this to increase security on their website. This is absurd, ludicrous, and unnecessary. The privacy concerns are immense. The IRS will start to build a massive database of pictures. Needless to say, there will be so much opportunity for hackers to access the information and a possibility that the IRS will share with other federal agencies, including law enforcement. There is also the problem of people without the kind of hardware necessary to take and upload selfies. No roadblocks should be put in the way of people accessing their own information.
Now, as tax filing season gets underway, the IRS notes it will likely have a backlog of several million unprocessed tax returns. This means many Americans will wait for months to get their hard-earned money back from the government. This amounts to the government forcing the taxpayers to give them an interest-free loan and then delaying repayment indefinitely. Stunningly, amidst all this, there are policymakers in Washington suggesting the IRS should have more power. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) has introduced a proposal entitled the “Tax Filing Simplification Act” which would put the IRS in charge of filing tax returns themselves and sending taxpayers the bill when all is said and done. Simply put, this would be a disaster scenario. When a taxpayer files taxes, they choose the deductions that work best for them and their families. IRS has no such motive at heart, and as their name suggests, are solely concerned with bringing in revenue. There is no incentive for the IRS to work in the best interest of the taxpayer. Further, when there are disputes between taxpayers and the IRS, the burden of proof would be shifted to the former, making it harder for citizens to get access to money they were rightly owed and wrongfully denied by the government. Not only has the IRS proven it does not act in the best interests of taxpayers, it has shown that it often actively works against those interests. Analyses of their audit data show the agency often targets the poorest counties in America for excess scrutiny. The expressed reason behind this was that these communities do not have the resources to adequately fight back. With the IRS in charge of filing taxes, there is little doubt the ones who will be left behind are those who cannot fight back. If the IRS takes more than it is entitled to, vulnerable communities would either have to passively accept the missing income or attempt a complex legal battle where the burden of proof is higher. Dealing with the IRS is daunting enough as it is. Proposals like Sen. Warren’s would make things exponentially harder.
All this illustrates the “mission creep” underway at the IRS. The agency’s initial mission was to help Americans understand and navigate the tax code and to collect revenue. It slowly expanded to include the administration of social benefits and tax credits. Now, certain members of Congress want to further expand the agency into the tax filer for the entire nation. When the IRS complains about having to lay off staff or the fact that its budget is smaller than it was years ago, perhaps the problem isn’t that they are ill-equipped to handle revenue collection. The problem may be that bureaucrats within the agency and would-be central planners in Congress have tried to expand the scope of the agency far beyond its original intent. The proper solutions would be to scale back the agency’s role altogether. If the IRS is still searching for things to do, it can try to locate the sources of multiple illegal taxpayer information leaks in the recent past. It can also ensure no more Americans are targeted for scrutiny because of their political or socio-economic status. Any solution that begins by further empowering an agency with such glaring holes misses the mark.
Happy Anniversary to the Baltimore IG
For the past few decades, Baltimore has continued its slow, sorry slide toward failed governance. Charm City’s murder count routinely tops 300, resulting in a homicide rate significantly higher than other major cities such as Chicago and Philadelphia. The city’s public officials have faced conviction after conviction for charges of wrongdoing. Earlier this month, the city’s top prosecutor, Marilyn Mosby, was indicted on federal charges of perjury and the filing of false loan applications related to the purchase of two Florida vacation properties. Baltimore desperately needs strong voices for accountability, and for the first time in decades, they have such a figure in Inspector General (IG) Isabel Cumming. For the past four years, Cumming has turned a moribund IG office into a waste and fraud fighting machine, saving the city more than $7 million per year and identifying millions more in waste, fraud, and abuse. The IG deserves Baltimore’s respect and gratitude for the making Baltimore a fairer, more honest place.
When Cumming took her post on January 29, 2018, the IG’s office was a sad spectacle. While the watchdog technically existed, it had not done much of anything following the forced resignation of Robert Pearre. Pearre wanted to investigate a high-ranking official (then-Chief Information Officer Jerome Mullen), and this did not sit well with Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake’s deputy chief of staff Kimberly Morton. Pearre flew too close to the sun and had to relinquish his position as a result. Between Pearre’s ouster and Cumming’s appointment, the IG office failed to issue a single public investigative report, shuttered its Twitter account, and identified a mere $22,000 in savings for FY 2017. Days after being chosen as Baltimore’s IG in 2018, Cumming made clear that “nobody is off limits. Overtime situations, theft of time. Purchase cards. There are so many areas that need to be looked at… I love going after white collar criminals.” At the time, then-Mayor Pugh sung her praises, stating Cumming “knows how to operate independently to be fair and just.” After media reports revealed that then-Mayor Pugh had cozy financial ties to the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS), the IG’s office began to take a closer look at the city leader’s money dealings. And, since Pugh’s indictment, Cumming has continued to fight the good fight to hold corrupt city officials accountable. One recent target has been Baltimore City State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby, known for her lavish international trips on the taxpayer’s dime and problems accurately reporting her finances. Following the release of a report detailing Mosby’s many ethically dubious travel expenditures, Mosby’s lawyers pressured the IG office to revise the report to make the embattled attorney look better. Cumming stood firm, responding, “No. I’m standing behind my report.” And, now that Mosby has been indicted, Cumming’s decision to not waver in holding her accountable looks all the better.
Not everyone is thrilled with the IG’s work. An IG Advisory Board was created with the task of appointing the IG, conducting an annual performance review, and reviewing, revising, and approving the IG’s budget. That is it. In just two meetings, the Board has already overstepped its bounds. At the panel’s inaugural meeting in July of 2021, Chairman Solicitor Shea said he wants the Board to “delve into particulars” of the IG’s investigations, request public comment and interview the OIG employees. This is an inappropriate use of the Board, and such sentiments indicate why it is critical to keep the Board independent. The biggest weakness with the Board is that it is comprised of officials who could conceivably become targets of investigation by the IG. Not surprisingly, then, many members of this board are critical of the IG’s activities and are actively trying to rein her in. Board chairman (and city solicitor) James Shea has implied that Cumming lacks “equity” and “quality control” in her investigations, despite little evidence put forward to substantiate those allegations. This pointless tug-of-war will likely continue if Board members can be influenced by officials such as City Council President Nick Mosby, who is not happy that his wife (Marilyn Mosby) is a target of investigation by the watchdog. Nick Mosby, in his capacity as City Council President, appointments 2 members of the Advisory Board. Needless to say, a major conflict of interest that would even make a Chicago politician blush. While an IG Advisory Board could be a positive influence on Baltimore and her IG, the body will continue to be hamstrung by political considerations unless the Board sheds its partisan makeup. That would mean getting rid of officials such as Shea and Michael Huber (Mayor Scott’s chief of staff) and replacing them with citizens of Baltimore who have no political ties. Cumming’s tenure is up in two years so it is critical that the changes to the IG Advisory Board happen now in order for the next IG to be independent and be able to root out waste and corruption in Charm City.
BLOGS:
Friday: IG Cumming has delivered for Charm City
Media:
January 24, 2022: WBFF Fox45 (Baltimore, Md.) interviewed me about a new law to restrict members of Congress from trading stocks.
January 24, 2022: I appeared on One America News to talk about the IRS requiring selfies to access taxpayer information.
January 25, 2022: The Center Square ran TPA’s op-ed, “The CDC is mimicking anti-vaxxer rhetoric in its messaging on nicotine.”
January 25, 2022: Townhall.com ran TPA’s op-ed, “Study Finds Drop in Menthol Cigarette Sales, Leaves Out Major Tax Increase in Neighboring State.”
January 25, 2022: WBFF Fox45 (Baltimore, Md.) quoted TPA in their story, “Taxpayer group: Marilyn Mosby should be concerned about campaign finance violations.”
January 25, 2022: WNEM CBS5 (Saginaw, Mich.) mentioned TPA in their story, “Congressman Kildee introduces bill to ban members of Congress from trading stock.”
January 26, 2022: WBFF Fox45 (Baltimore, Md.) quoted TPA in their story, “Despite probe, developer deal in Baltimore County goes on.”
January 27, 2022: The Washington Examiner (Washington, D.C.) ran TPA’s o-ed, “This tax filing season, IRS needs reform, not new power.”
January 27, 2022: WBFF Fox45 (Baltimore, Md.) interviewed me about the four-year anniversary of the Baltimore City IG.
January 27, 2022: I appeared on WBOB 600 AM (Jacksonville, Fla.) to talk about tax increases and electric vehicles.
Have a great weekend!
