WASHINGTON, D.C. – Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith (MO-08) released the following statement after the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced they would be implementing additional “safeguards” to shield taxpayers making less than $400,000 from increased audits funded by President Biden’s so-called “Inflation Reduction Act,” which was signed into law over one year ago. The announcement fails to provide sufficient details about these safeguards, but confirms Republican warnings that the Inflation Reduction Act, as written, would result in more audits for middle-class families, and that Secretary Yellen’s selectively worded pledge not to audit those families had no legal force.

Chairman Smith and Ways and Means Republicans have continuously demanded the Biden Administration abandon their plan to increase tax revenue by squeezing working and middle-class taxpayers out of more of their hard-earned money.

Chairman Smith said, “After more than a year of Ways and Means Republicans sounding the alarm, the IRS has finally acknowledged Democrats’ so-called Inflation Reduction Act would result in increased audits on taxpayers making less than $400,000, forcing them to try and take corrective actions. While this announcement appears to be a step in the right direction, previous ‘plans’ released by the IRS have continuously fallen short when it comes to protecting working Americans and were instead just thinly veiled confirmations of more audits in line with previous historic highs.

“These safeguards must not be empty promises and actually protect taxpayers from Democrats’ supercharged IRS and 87,000 new employees. House Republicans, not Democrats, have proven we are the party of the working class and the first bill we passed in the new Republican majority was to repeal that army of IRS agents created by the Inflation Reduction Act.

READ: Chairman Smith Blasts Hollow IRS “Plan” that Fails to Provide Details on How Their $80 Billion Raise Will be Spent

WATCH: IRS Commissioner Dodges Questions About IRS Auditing Middle-Class Families Above “Historical Levels”