Democrats are facing yet another bruising battle over IRS funding this fall, pushing back against Republicans who are dug in on slashing the tax-collecting agency’s budget.
With funding cuts to fight on many fronts, Democrats say the IRS remains a priority. But ever since Democrats gave the IRS an extra $80 billion to go after tax evaders three years ago, Republicans have pushed back by slashing the agency’s budget and workforce.
The FY2026 FSGG spending bill House Republicans marked up Monday night underscores the scale of the fight ahead. It would cut the IRS budget by $2.8 billion.
Plus, IRS funding isn’t the most straightforward of Democrats’ budget fights. Rep. Steny Hoyer (Md.), the top Democrat on the House Appropriations panel that oversees the IRS, said it’s “not something that everybody wants to go home and sell.” But Hoyer added that members want to spend the revenue that the IRS brings in thanks to its budget.
“It’s not a sexy subcommittee,” Hoyer said. “The Treasury Department — who stays awake at night dreaming about the Treasury Department? But it’s critical.”
IRS messaging. To make the case for IRS funds, Democrats are putting a new spin on their arguments amid the GOP campaign to cut government spending.
“[Republican] colleagues who are talking about spending — this is a revenue problem. We’re leaving that money on the table,” House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) said.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) framed efforts to cut the IRS budget as aligned with Republicans’ focus in the One Big Beautiful Bill, which slashed spending on Medicaid and SNAP. Democrats are making those cuts a focus of their campaign strategy ahead of the midterms.
On how the IRS funding issue can be a winning one for his party, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) said that Americans “understand the implications of following the money.”
