Current:Home > ContactIRS recovers $4.7 billion in back taxes and braces for cuts with Trump and GOP in power -NextFrontier Finance
IRS recovers $4.7 billion in back taxes and braces for cuts with Trump and GOP in power
Poinbank Exchange View
Date:2025-04-07 22:21:15
WASHINGTON (AP) — IRS leadership on Thursday announced that the agency has recovered $4.7 billion in back taxes and proceeds from a variety of crimes since the nation’s tax collector received a massive glut of funding through Democrats’ flagship tax, climate and health lawin 2022.
The announcement comes under the backdrop of a promised reckoning from Republicans who will hold a majority over both chambers of the next Congress and have long called for rescinding the tens of billions of dollars in funding provided to the agency by Democrats.
IRS leadership, meanwhile, is hoping to justify saving the funding the agency already has.
On a call with reporters to preview the announcement, IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel said improvements made to the agency during his term will help the incoming administration and new Republican majority congress achieve its goals of administering an extension of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
Republicans plan to renew some $4 trillion in expiring GOP tax cuts, a signature domestic achievement of Trump’s first term and an issue that may define his return to the White House.
“We know there are serious discussions about a major tax bill coming out of the next Congress,” Werfel said, “and with the improvements we’ve made since I’ve been here, I’m quite confident the IRS will be well positioned to deliver on whatever new tax law that Congress passes.”
Tax collections announced Thursday include $1.3 billion from high-income taxpayers who did not pay overdue tax debts, $2.9 billion related to IRS Criminal Investigation work into crimes like drug trafficking and terrorist financing, and $475 million in proceeds from criminal and civil cases that came from to whistleblower information.
The IRS also announced Thursday that it has collected $292 million from more than 28,000 high-income non-filers who have not filed taxes since 2017, an increase of $120 million since September.
Despite its gains, the future of the agency’s funding is in limbo.
The IRS originally received an $80 billion infusion of funds under the Inflation Reduction Act though the 2023 debt ceiling and budget-cuts deal between Republicans and the White House resulted in $1.4 billion rescinded from the agency and a separate agreement to take $20 billion from the IRS over the next two years and divert those funds to other nondefense programs.
In November, U.S. Treasury officials called on Congress to unlock $20 billionin IRS enforcement money that is tied up in legislative language that has effectively rendered the money frozen.
The $20 billion in question is separate from another $20 billion rescinded from the agency last year. However, the legislative mechanism keeping the government afloat inadvertently duplicated the one-time cut.
Treasury officials warn of dire consequences if the funding is effectively rescinded through inaction.
Trump last week announced plans to nominate former Missouri congressman Billy Long, who worked as an auctioneer before serving six terms in the House of Representatives, to serve as the next commissioner of the IRS. Democrats like Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) have called Long’s nomination “a bizarre choice” since Long “jumped into the scam-plagued industry involving the Employee Retention Tax Credit.”
Trump said on his social media site that “Taxpayers and the wonderful employees of the IRS will love having Billy at the helm.”
Werfel’s term is set to end in 2027, and he has not indicated whether he plans to step down from his role before Trump’s inauguration. Trump is permitted to fire Werfelunder the law.
Disclaimer: The copyright of this article belongs to the original author. Reposting this article is solely for the purpose of information dissemination and does not constitute any investment advice. If there is any infringement, please contact us immediately. We will make corrections or deletions as necessary. Thank you.
veryGood! (4892)
Related
- Why we love Bear Pond Books, a ski town bookstore with a French bulldog 'Staff Pup'
- Where the jobs are: Strong hiring in most industries has far outpaced high-profile layoffs
- The U.S. created an extraordinary number of jobs in January. Here's a deeper look
- Why is Mayorkas being impeached? What to know about the House's push to punish the DHS secretary
- 'We're reborn!' Gazans express joy at returning home to north
- Joshua Schulte, who sent CIA secrets to WikiLeaks, sentenced to 40 years in prison
- Could Biden shut down the border now? What to know about the latest immigration debate
- Tesla recalls 2.2 million cars — nearly all of its vehicles sold in the U.S. — over warning light issue
- Moving abroad can be expensive: These 5 countries will 'pay' you to move there
- Avalanche forecasters try to curb deaths as skiers and snowmobilers flock to backcountry areas
Ranking
- Whoopi Goldberg is delightfully vile as Miss Hannigan in ‘Annie’ stage return
- Could Biden shut down the border now? What to know about the latest immigration debate
- Delta and Amex hike credit card fees while enhancing perks. Here's what to know.
- Bill Cosby sued for alleged 1986 sexual assault of teen in Las Vegas hotel
- Questlove charts 50 years of SNL musical hits (and misses)
- Georgia sues Biden administration to extend Medicaid program with work requirement
- Biden is left with few choices as immigration takes center stage in American politics
- Mariah Carey Turns Heads in Risqué Pantsless Look at 2024 Recording Academy Honors
Recommendation
NFL Week 15 picks straight up and against spread: Bills, Lions put No. 1 seed hopes on line
Tom Hollander remembers late 'Feud' co-star Treat Williams: 'We haven't really mourned him'
Carl Weathers, linebacker-turned-actor who starred in ‘Rocky’ movies and ‘The Mandalorian,’ dies
Crystal Hefner Says Hugh Hefner Wanted Her to Stay Skinny and Have Big Fake Boobs
Toyota to invest $922 million to build a new paint facility at its Kentucky complex
Dog rescued after more than a week trapped inside shipping container in Texas port
Starting five: Cameron Brink, Stanford host UCLA in biggest women's game of the weekend
Grammy nominee Victoria Monét on making history: One step closer to a really big dream