WASHINGTON—House Committee on Oversight and Reform Ranking Member James Comer (R-Ky.), House Committee on the Judiciary Ranking Member Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), and House Committee on Administration Ranking Member Rodney Davis (R-Ill.) called on Attorney General Merrick Garland to swiftly investigate the massive leak of sensitive tax information from the IRS and bring those responsible to justice. 

 

Earlier this week, ProPublica published an article containing details of federal tax filings going back more than a decade, involving wealthy individuals from across the business and political spectrum. The unlawful disclosure of tax return information by a federal employee is a felony, and given the nature of the data, it appears it could have been leaked by a government employee.  

 

“Leaks of tax information, particularly by government officials entrusted with caring for that sensitive information, are completely unacceptable. Those responsible must be pursued to the fullest extent of the law,” wrote the Republican leaders. “... Every American should have confidence that their personal tax information is secure and safe from privacy violations. Especially as the Biden Administration’s proposed budget would vastly increase the size and staffing of the IRS, we are concerned about the potential for future leaks of sensitive tax information, particularly if such leaks are politically motivated or targeted against those who may take unpopular positions. Such leaks will continue to deteriorate the American people’s trust in the IRS, and our federal government.”

 

In their letter to Attorney General Garland, the Republican leaders call for the Department of Justice to provide a briefing on its efforts to investigate this leak. They also request all documents and communications related to enforcing federal tax confidentiality law and efforts to investigate the leak of tax records.  

 

The letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland is available here.