ASA Supports the Family and Small Business Taxpayer Protection Act, H.R. 9092

ASA supports the Family and Small Business Taxpayer Protection Act, H.R. 9092, which would rescind the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022’s billions in funding for the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) expanded enforcement efforts, while retaining funding for the IRS to focus on improving taxpayer services and modernizing operations to serve taxpayers.  It is disheartening that Congress would earmark $45.6 billion (58%) for enforcement efforts while only providing $3 billion (4%) for taxpayer services from the $80 billion allocated to the IRS in the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. Before considering how to penalize taxpayers, the agency should address the immense backlog facing the agency and how to better assist taxpayers with compliance.  In late August 2022, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) detailed how the IRS’s processing delays have prevented businesses from receiving key pandemic relief benefits.  More specifically, the IRS did not begin processing claims for qualified Sick and Family Leave Credits and Employee Retention Credit for 12 months. As of October 21, 2022, the IRS reported the agency still has 5.1 million unprocessed individual returns to process.  This legislation would address these concerns and directs the IRS to spend resources to help and serve taxpayers rather than overwhelmingly focus on enforcement and penalties.