Last year, we saw a massive violation of taxpayer privacy when ProPublica, a non-governmental advocacy group, published the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) records of high-profile taxpayers like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos. This was the largest breach of taxpayer data in the history of the IRS.
Alarmingly, this data is being used as a political cudgel. More than one year later, Democrats and the Biden Administration are no closer to holding the leakers accountable, and we are one step closer to treating our Fourth Amendment freedoms as a privilege for political allies, not a right held by every American.
This is not the first time Democrats have ignored similar behavior from the IRS. During President Obama’s years in office, the IRS subjected conservative nonprofits to undue scrutiny in their applications for tax-exempt status while rubber stamping similar Democrat nonprofits.
The IRS has proven that they cannot be trusted with our data—so why would we give them more? We have fought to keep a tight leash on the data Americans are forced to report. Earlier this Congress, I led an effort with over 200 of my colleagues expressing our opposition to expanded IRS surveillance on small-dollar transactions. I am proud to say that thanks to our effort, the IRS rolled back its proposed surveillance.
Americans trust the IRS with some of their most sensitive data, and we deserve to know that data is being kept safe. This leak was a federal crime and warrants a full investigation. The American people deserve answers and accountability.