Hiring at the IRS has risen by more than 13 percent over the past year as the number of employees at the agency reaches a level unseen in over a decade.
The last time the IRS employed more than 90,000 people was 2012, when the agency had 90,280 full-time equivalent positions. Staffing dipped below 80,000 in 2015 and remained below that level until now.
The tax agency was granted $80 billion under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) signed into law by President Joe Biden last year. The amount was later reduced to $60 billion as part of a deal with Republicans this year.
Mr. Werfel told reporters that the agency is utilizing IRA funds to make an “immediate, meaningful difference to deliver the service taxpayers and the nation deserve.” He also pushed back against claims that the IRS intended to boost the number of its armed agents.
“A year ago, there were suggestions that this funding was going to supply an army of armed IRS agents who were out to shake down average taxpayers. This myth should be laid to rest,” he said. “There is no mythical army of new IRS agents on the streets.”
The division is tasked with investigating issues of tax evasion and fraud. The personnel in the division are armed when “they’re putting themselves in danger,” he said while also clarifying that 3 percent of IRS agents are armed.
IRS Weaponization
In June, 20 armed agents from the IRS and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) visited the Highwood Creek Outfitters in Great Falls, Montana. The agents then shut down the shop.“I was completely afraid for all the [passersby],” Tom Van Hoose, owner of the store, told Fox News. “What do you do when you got 20 heavily armed IRS agents in full battle rattle with guns at the ready?”
When Rep. Matt Rosendale (R-Mont.) visited the site after the IRS incident, he was “informed that the IRS confiscated the store’s 4473 forms—containing personal, sensitive information of customers and no financial information,” according to a June 30 press release.
“Immediately after his visit, Rep. Rosendale sent a letter to ATF Director Dettelbach and IRS Commissioner Werfel demanding answers to the purpose of this unannounced, armed raid.”
On June 30, Mr. Rosendale introduced the “Why Does the IRS Need Guns Act” which aims to prevent the IRS from using taxpayer dollars to buy firearms for its agents.
The bill also intends to transfer all guns and ammunition in the possession of the IRS to the General Services administration. In addition, the Criminal Investigation Division would be shifted to the Department of Justice.
“Biden’s alphabet agencies have no business intimidating hardworking Montanans,” he said.
87,000 New IRS Agents
The IRS intends to hire 87,000 new employees over a ten-year period, Mr. Werfel revealed during the April 27 hearing of the House Ways and Means Committee.A large portion of the hires would be to replace workers lost from employee attrition and fill the historically low staffing level, he said while pointing out that 16,000 IRS employees are expected to retire by the end of 2024.
“We are making very good progress on our hiring,” Mr. Werfel said on Tuesday, according to the Federal News Network. “The important point here is that our staffing size is a lot smaller than it was previously, due to these funding cuts.”
“We’re hiring, in some cases, mid-career. In some cases, at retirement. We’re having success, too, hiring people right out of school where they’ll grow into the job.”
The agency is looking to recruit top talent from accounting and law firms to go after wealthy individuals who cheat on taxes. It is also seeking to hire data scientists.
Since the IRA funding was approved, the IRS has opened 35 Taxpayer Assistance Centers (TAC) throughout the country as part of its Community Assistance Visits program, according to a July 14 news release.
“The IRS believes Community Assistance Visits will help address the needs of taxpayers who aren’t able to visit an in-person office,” the agency said. The IRS has hired over 600 personnel at the TACs.
