TPA Slams IRS for Secretly Building Government-Run Tax Prep Pilot Program 

For Immediate Release           Contact: Abigail Graham: (202) 417-7235

March 15, 2023

Washington D.C. – Today, the Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) released the following statement slamming the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for moving ahead and building a pilot program to push government-run tax preparation system onto Americans even before the administration’s so-called “independent” study on the subject is complete. This latest revelation comes in a Washington Post article published today.  

“Someone should tell the IRS that American Democracy is predicated on the separation of powers where Congress passes laws and the Executive Branch implements them. Instead, the IRS unilaterally built a pilot program to give itself the power to prepare and file tax returns without Congressional approval and before a study on the feasibility of such a system was even completed,” said TPA President David Williams.  

“For years, the IRS has claimed that the agency is underfunded. But apparently, taxpayer funds exist to audit Black Americans at much higher rates and to build a pilot program that taxpayers do not want.  This unproven and secret tax preparation system would push government-run tax prep onto Americans as soon as next tax season.  

“Congress must assert its constitutional authority and stand up for the hardworking taxpayers they represent. Congress also needs to oppose this unilateral effort by the Biden Administration and the IRS to implement an unnecessary and wasteful IRS-run tax preparation system.” 

#  

Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) is a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to educating the public through the research, analysis and dissemination of information on the government’s effects on the economy.