IRS Clashes with White House Over Use of Tax Data for Immigration Checks

The Internal Revenue Service had a disagreement with the White House over the use of tax data to help track down suspected undocumented immigrants. This incident occurred just hours before Trump administration officials ousted IRS Commissioner Billy Long, according to two anonymous sources.

The Department of Homeland Security submitted a list of 40,000 suspected undocumented workers to the IRS on Thursday, requesting the IRS to cross-reference their confidential taxpayer data. The sources revealed this information on the condition of anonymity.

The Treasury Department, the supervising agency of the IRS, had agreed with the DHS in April to share data. This agreement was reached despite resistance from the IRS’s privacy lawyers. DHS officials indicated they might later request the IRS’s help in locating about 7 million people. The federal government estimates there are approximately 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. (source).

However, the IRS reported that they could only confirm less than 3% of the names provided by immigration enforcement officials. The verified names were mostly of those individuals for whom DHS had provided an IRS-specific Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN). ITINs are often used by immigrants instead of Social Security numbers on tax filings, facilitating the collection of tens of billions of dollars in taxes every year from undocumented immigrants.

White House officials asked for more information regarding the taxpayers identified by the IRS. They specifically requested details of those who had claimed the earned income tax credit, beneficial for some low-income filers. The IRS denied this request, citing the privacy rights of taxpayers.

Billy Long, the IRS Commissioner, had earlier stated that the IRS would not disclose confidential taxpayer information outside the framework of the IRS’s agreement with DHS.

Despite this disagreement, it is unclear whether the IRS’s role in President Donald Trump’s mass deportation drive influenced Long’s exit from the IRS.

White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson stated that the Trump administration is committed to breaking down information silos to prevent illegal aliens from exploiting benefits meant for hardworking American taxpayers.

The DHS declared that the agreement with the IRS ensures the protection of sensitive taxpayer information, while enabling law enforcement to pursue criminal violations effectively.

Billy Long conveyed on Friday that Trump intends to nominate him as the U.S. ambassador to Iceland, following less than two months in the IRS job. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will serve as the interim IRS commissioner. These moves were confirmed by Trump administration officials.

Long, previously a six-term Republican congressman from Missouri, was confirmed as the IRS leader in mid-June. Trump broke from tradition by not allowing Danny Werfel, the former Biden-appointed IRS commissioner, to finish his full five-year term. (source).