The Democrats' big climate and tax spending package will give the IRS almost 80 billion dollars to improve tax enforcement and customer service.
The idea of an " army" of 87,000 agents has been seized upon by Republicans, although a Treasury Department report states that the IRS could hire many new employees by 2031.
"If Democrats are going to keep declaring everything to be free, Biden is going to need a lot more taxpayer money," said Rick Scott, a Republican from Florida. It's how we get back to the IRS. It is a vicious cycle to fund socialism.
Senator Ron Wyden isn't laughing at that argument.
Wyden said that even senators who should know better are spinning wild fantasy stories about 87,000 agents who are armed to the teeth and coming to the doors of innocent small business people.
He said that by attacking the IRS, Republicans are helping tax dodgers get away with their crimes. The IRS commissioner said that the amount of taxes going uncollected could be upwards of $1 trillion. The top 1% of Americans didn't report 21% of their income, according to a study by the IRS.
Wyden said that Republicans want to preserve the status quo so that only the little guys get audited.
Wyden made it clear that some of the funding would go towards customer service, something that the agency has struggled with since the beginning of the Pandemic. With a shrinking budget and low staffing levels compounded by new pandemic-era responsibilities, the IRS accumulated a pile of millions of unprocessed returns. The IRS's inability to answer the phone and provide prompt customer service has caused some Americans to wait months to get their tax refunds.
The IRS is being attacked and vilified by the far right because it makes it easier to attack and vilify. "That's why we've heard so many lies about new IRS agents." I do not know where this number came from.
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