The Inflation Reduction Act Unleashes A Tougher IRS

Forbes ^ | Aug 8, 2022, | Robert W. Wood

[nickcarraway]

The Schumer-Manchin tax bill known as the Inflation Reduction Act, which passed the Senate on Sunday, raises taxes and will give the IRS billions to go into what the Wall Street Journal called “beast mode.”

In all, the meant-to-be-inflation buster bill will dole out about $80 billion to the IRS for increase enforcement, operational improvements, customer service, and systems modernization. Think big, really big. That $80 billion is more than six times the current annual IRS budget of $12.6 billion.

How can the IRS spend all of that? You guessed it, the bill says a whopping $45.6 billion will be for enforcement, and make no mistake, enforcement is the main directive from Democrats to the IRS. Get bigger, tougher and faster at collecting, and make them pay. Meanwhile, the IRS could be ramping up its police power too. The IRS is a key part of the government, but not one you usually associate with law enforcement and guns.

Only the Criminal Investigation Division of the IRS can carry guns, but the IRS has been buying more guns and ammunition in recent years, snapping up nearly $700,000 in ammo in early 2022. The bullet buy prompted Representatives Matt Gaetz (R-FL) and Jeff Duncan (R-SC) to introduce the “Disarm the IRS Act,” to prohibit the IRS from buying ammunition.

Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) tweeted, "87,000 IRS agents will be hired with $80 billion taxpayer dollars when the Senate Reconciliation bill passes this weekend. And they're buying more guns & ammo too. Lower to middle income Americans & small businesses will be the primary targets of Democrat's new IRS force."

The IRS has a hard job to do, but worry about the IRS inventory of weapons is not new. An official report published by the Government Accountability

[Jeff Chandler]

for

[Chicory]

Thanks, Taxman!

[Taxman]

You are most welcome!

[Chgogal]

Defund the IRS. Institute a 10% individual tax rate.