IRS To Ramp Up Audits on Americans

President Joe Biden has long accused the wealthy of not paying their fair share of taxes. When lawmakers passed the bipartisan Inflation Reduction Act, it included $80 billion in funding to hire more employees at the IRS. Now, they are reportedly putting the money to use by targeting taxpayers.

On April 6, a report by Treasury Department officials and the IRS said they would start using some of those funds to increase audits, multiple news outlets revealed. The plan is to target people who earn over $400,000 per year and business owners who file complex taxes. In the State of the Union Address, Biden told the American people that the current “tax system is not fair.” He said he doesn’t believe billionaires should pay lower tax rates than teachers.

The Washington Post reported Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said he wants the IRS to increase its audits on wealthy Americans so that they are at the rate they were in 2011. He explained that under the current system, low-income earners are “more likely to be audited than if you’re wealthy.”

The tax agency is also going to hire more customer service representatives so that the American people can actually reach a person when they call the IRS. In the report, Commissioner Daniel Werfel claimed the IRS is going to create a “world-class customer service operation.”

Republicans are trying to stop the IRS plans. One of the first actions the House GOP majority took this session was a vote to cut funding for the agency. While it passed the lower chamber, it has no chance of ever making it through the Senate as long as the Democratic Party holds the majority there. Still, they have repeatedly spoken out against it and hope to have enough power after the 2024 election to make the changes.