Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore., questions IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig at a Senate Finance Committee hearing.
Tom Williams | pool | reuters
President Joe BidenNominee to lead IRS answers questions during Senate Finance Committee the hearing This week, highlights of key issues facing lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.
Daniel WerfelA former budget official and private sector leader, asked questions on Wednesday about the agency’s funding, enforcement, transparency and other priorities.
Mark Everson, former IRS commissioner and current vice chairman of AlliantGroup, said, “I think there’s clearly an honor and recognition for Danny Werfel that he’s going to go through.”
While there is still time for questions, Everson expects a full Senate vote and confirmation to come “in a few weeks.”
Here are some important excerpts from the hearing.
Probe into $80 billion in IRS funding will continue
The nomination comes at a critical time for the beleaguered agency, which Funding of $ 80 billion is being received As part of the Inflation Reduction Act over the Next Decade in August.
After months of investigation, House Republicans voted to cancel funding In January, what was largely seen as a political messaging bill failed to pass in the Senate without a vote or support from the White House.
If I have the privilege of being confirmed, audit and compliance priorities will focus on enhancing the IRS’s capabilities to ensure that America’s highest earners comply with tax laws.
Daniel Werfel
irs commissioner nominee
“Just because [Werfel’s hearing] was smooth doesn’t mean there won’t be a proper environment with the House in Republican hands and the election coming up,” Everson said.
Agency expected to deliver $80 billion funding plan per Friday Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s request,
No audit rate increase for those making less than $400,000
next an instruction From yellenWerfel pledged not to increase audit rates for small businesses and households making less than $400,000 relative to recent years.
In his opening statement, Werfel said, “If I am lucky enough to be confirmed, audit and compliance priorities will be focused on enhancing the capabilities of the IRS to ensure that America’s highest earners obey the tax laws.”
Tax enforcement fairness is a major issue
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore. closed the hearing by emphasizing the Inflation Reduction Act’s goal of providing resources to achieve fairness in tax enforcement with the aim of “going after tax cheats from the big guys”.
Wealthy Americans have seen increasingly fewer audits after years of budget cuts. During FY2022, millionaires face 1.1% chance of IRS audit, according to a recent report From Syracuse University’s Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse.
Meanwhile, the audit rate is declined more slowly Claimants for low earners earned income tax creditand black americans are roughly three to five times more likely more likely than other taxpayers to face an IRS audit, according to recent study,
If poor people are more likely to be audited than the wealthy, Werfel said, “this potentially undermines public trust and needs to be addressed within the tax system.”
Angelique Neal, a tax attorney at Dickinson Wright, said Werfel “seems committed” to addressing these audit disparities to ensure fairness and equitable treatment for all taxpayers.
Building trust is “one of the foundations of government,” especially for the agency that collects the vast majority of revenue, said Neal, who previously served as a senior trial attorney in the IRS’s Office of the Chief Counsel. .