Republicans seek answers from Treasury IG on plans for IRS funding increase

Republican U.S. Senate Finance Committee members are seeking more visibility from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) on how it and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will deploy a recent funding increase.

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“The recent boost of nearly $80 billion in supplemental funding for the IRS is devoted disproportionately to enforcement, and likewise disproportionately lacks emphasis on oversight and the need for IRS accountability and transparency to all Americans,” the Republicans wrote in a letter to TIGTA Director Russell George.

The Republicans contend that a disproportionate amount is allocated for enforcement while less is going to TIGTA for oversight. Specifically, they said the additional IRS funding devotes 57 percent to enforcement and only 0.51 percent to TIGTA.

The Republican members want to know how TIGTA intends to use and prioritize the extra funding it received from the IRS. Further, the Republicans asked TIGTA about its views on certain high-risk areas on which IRS should be focused.

“What are the most significant existing deficiencies at IRS in internal financial controls that may allow for waste, fraud, and abuse in tax administration given the supersized, near-$80 billion of largely unbridled IRS funding recently provided, and what are the most significant existing deficiencies at IRS in internal taxpayer-privacy-protection controls,” they asked.

They are seeking answers from TIGTA on a variety of questions about the plans for the funding by Oct. 27.