Smith: Treasury Spending Plan ‘Too Little, Too Late’

Washington, D.C. – Today, Rep. Adrian Smith (R-NE) – a senior member of the Ways and Means Committee and Chairman of the Trade Subcommittee – released the following statement on the Department of Treasury’s release of their ten-year spending plan:

“This spending plan is too little, too late. Treasury blew through their February 17th deadline to release this plan, which shows just how unserious they are about assuring American families and small businesses they won’t be targeted under the $80 billion tax enforcement scheme in the Inflation Act. Instead, the IRS has doubled down on inserting itself into every aspect of Americans’ lives, at every opportunity. Republicans in Congress aren’t the only ones sounding the alarm on this funding: the IRS’s own Taxpayer Advocate has said the way these funds are allocated will not improve customer service because the funding fails ‘to strike an appropriate balance between serving taxpayers and enforcing the law.’

“Until the administration gets its priorities in order, no spending plan can alleviate the very serious concerns I have about what these dollars will mean for the everyday Americans who pay their taxes and strive to do the right thing. The only acceptable path forward is to rescind the enforcement funding in the Inflation Act so Congress can work toward the reforms needed to refocus the IRS on taxpayer services.”

The Family and Small Business Taxpayer Protection Act, introduced by Reps. Smith and Michelle Steel (R-CA) would defund the Biden Administration’s plan to hire 87,000 new IRS agents and block efforts to drastically increase audits on middle class families while preserving funding for customer service and IT modernization. It was the first piece of legislation brought to the floor of the House of Representatives in the Republican majority. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen – when asked about the number of new audits funded by the Inflation Act before the House Ways and Means Committee on March 10, 2023 – admitted the proportion of new audits on individuals and small businesses making under $400,000 would remain in line with historic levels, which GAO has found to be more than 90% of audits.