Democrat bill aims to limit use of IRS agents for immigration

Two House Democrats, Suzan DelBene, D-Washington, and Terri Sewell, D-Alabama, introduced legislation that would prevent the Trump administration from reassigning Internal Revenue Service criminal investigators to immigration enforcement without the proper training and oversight.

The Protecting Taxpayer Resources Act would establish new safeguards to prevent the misuse of IRS personnel. If the Department of Homeland Security wanted to reassign IRS employees, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration would first need to determine that the reassigned personnel have received proper training to fulfill their new responsibilities, and that the reallocation does not hinder the tax agency's ability to fulfill its core responsibilities, including providing quality service to taxpayers and enforcing tax laws.

In February, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem urged Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to reassign IRS criminal investigators to the southern border to support President Trump's deportation efforts. The lawmakers contend that diverting IRS criminal investigators from their duties weakens tax enforcement and allows tax cheats to get away with not paying their taxes.

"Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and congressional Republicans are on a crusade to dismantle the IRS's ability to hold wealthy tax cheats accountable," DelBene said in a statement Thursday. "Since coming into office, they have cut significant amounts of staff and resources from the agency. The IRS has proven that with proper investments it can improve customer service and increase tax compliance for the wealthy and well-connected. Redirecting IRS agents to the southern border won't fix our immigration system, but it will undermine tax enforcement and let financial criminals off the hook."

She and Sewell noted the IRS has already lost approximately 10% of its staff since the beginning of the year, mainly in its compliance divisions, and the Trump administration is reportedly planning another round of staffing cuts by May. Congressional Republicans have also cut $20 billion in Inflation Reduction Act funding in the recent continuing resolution that was supposed to improve taxpayer services and increase compliance.

"In the midst of tax filing season and at a time when we are seeing the closure of almost 100 IRS offices around the country, we should not be diverting resources aimed at holding wealthy tax cheats accountable," said Sewell in a statement. "This legislation is the first step in thwarting the Trump administration's efforts to weaponize the IRS."