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Brady: One Year Later, Is the Biden Administration Even Investigating the IRS Leak?

June 08, 2022

Noting that one year later, the Biden Administration still does not know what taxpayer data was stolen and leaked presumably to support the Administration’s political agenda, Ways and Means Republican Leader Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX) issued the following statement:

“Given the lack of publicly available information and any hint of progress, it’s worth asking: Is the Biden Administration even investigating the IRS leak of taxpayers’ sensitive personal information?

“It’s unclear whether the Administration has been able to determine what was stolen.

“How can you investigate a crime if you don’t know what was stolen?”

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

  • The IRS Commissioner neglected to mention the massive theft in recent testimony: Despite the sensitivity of the investigation into the theft, Commissioner Charles Rettig only addressed congressional concerns upon questioning. Taxpayers received little assurance that their sensitive financial information is being kept safe.
  • Investigators still have not requested a copy of the stolen information: As of September 13, both the Treasury and the IRS say that they don’t “know whether there has been a data breach or a threat of a data breach” and that they do not “have any information concerning the sources of the alleged taxpayer information published by ProPublica.”
  • The American people deserve answers: One year later, the Biden Administration is no closer to holding accountable those responsible for leaking confidential, personal tax information.
  • Taxpayer privacy is paramount: Democrats have prioritized a supercharged IRS and surveillance scheme over getting to the bottom of this criminal breach of taxpayer information.

BACKGROUND:

  • In April 2022, nearly 10 months after the incident, Rep. Brady and Sen. Crapo sent a letter to Secretary Yellen demanding a timeline on the completion of the investigation on the criminal breach of taxpayer data. No timeline has been provided.
  • After a briefing on June 14, 2021 from Commissioner Rettig, Rep. Brady renewed his call for an “…aggressive investigation of this astonishing breach of trust to protect Americans’ personal finances from prying, political eyes.”
  • On June 8, 2021, ProPublica detailed income tax information to advance Democrats’ efforts to supercharge the IRS and to turn your local bank into a tax auditor.
  • On June 9, 2021, Rep. Brady and Sen. Crapo wrote to Commissioner Rettig demanding answers on the breach.