The IRS has had a tumultuous ride throughout this Trump administration with a revolving cast of leaders at the top.
The latest upheaval saw the White House drop a chief counsel nominee in the middle of the confirmation process. The agency has acting leadership and a newly-created CEO running the ship after Billy Long’s weeks-long tenure.
“Acting roles work in some positions, but I think here, you’ve got to have somebody that’s going to have staying power,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) said, noting tax filing season is around the corner.
Now there’s also the dynamic that the latest ouster came after MAGA influencer Laura Loomer posted about “major red flags” with the pick. And Loomer isn’t through yet.
“It could be better, as a lot of things in government,” Rep. Greg Murphy (R-N.C.) said.
Where this leaves the IRS. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle told us the agency’s leadership tumult has made them concerned about the IRS being able to achieve key projects and pull off a smooth tax season starting in January.
Republicans also say they have faith in the leadership of acting commissioner Scott Bessent, the treasury secretary, and CEO Frank Bisignano, who’s also Social Security commissioner. But that isn’t negating all their worries.
“We’re keeping an eye … they’re communicating with us what they’re doing,” House Ways and Means Committee Chair Jason Smith (R-Mo.) said. “But is it a concern that apparently the IRS can’t? Of course that’s a concern. But I have a lot of faith in the CEO of the IRS.”
Here’s House Budget Committee Chair Jodey Arrington (R-Texas):
“When you don’t have your team in place — people are policy, and it will just be a drag on advancing your policy agenda. And hey, listen, I’m all for the America first policy agenda. I don’t want anything to slow us down.”
Rep. David Schweikert (R-Ariz.) said the situation poses challenges for members hoping to complete significant projects, like advancing the IRS’s technology.
Democrats say the chaos is hitting a particularly tough spot.
“If there’s one agency in this town where stability is required, it’s the IRS,” Ways and Means Ranking Member Richie Neal (D-Mass.) said. “And if there’s an agency where everything rests upon their credibility, it’s the IRS.”
