President Donald Trump says he wants to close the federal budget deficit, but his administration is slashing staffing at the agency that collects the government’s money.
As of March 2, some 31% of the agency’s revenue agents—more than 3,600 people—had either been fired or taken a buyout, according to the report. Revenue agents conduct audits of individuals or corporations. Another 600 revenue officers, who act as debt collectors for the government, have departed. Overall, 11% of the IRS’ staff has left. And much greater cuts are coming, according to reports.
“There have never been cuts to the IRS on this order—never,” said Vanessa Williamson, senior fellow at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center.
“There’s going to be a lot more leeway when it comes to tax enforcement,” she told Fortune. “It’s basically Christmas coming early if you cheated on your taxes this year.”
The White House and Treasury did not respond to requests for comment from Fortune.
Beefing up the ranks of the IRS’ enforcers was a priority under the Biden administration; because of this, relatively more employees in these divisions are newer, making them easier to fire, ICIJ reported.
