Cantwell, Colleagues Condemn Illegal IRS-ICE Data Sharing

Cantwell, Colleagues Condemn Illegal IRS-ICE Data Sharing

Amicus brief urges Appeals Court to protect taxpayer privacy against ICE and IRS Overreach

WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), ranking member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and senior member of the Senate Finance Committee, joined nine Senators and 74 U.S. Representatives in submitting an amicus brief supporting the Community Economic Development Center of Southeastern Massachusetts in its suit against the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

Last year, the IRS entered into an agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), allowing ICE officers to ask the IRS for sensitive information about tax-paying undocumented immigrants. District Judge Indira Talwani blocked the agreement from continuing, citing violation of taxpayer privacy laws. The Trump Administration has appealed that decision, and Sen. Cantwell and colleagues are urging the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit to uphold the district judge's decision.

In the last year alone, ICE requested over 1.2 million records from the IRS, and the IRS provided addresses for more than 47,000 individuals to ICE., according to a report by the Department of Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.

"The data sharing at issue in this case by the [IRS] and [ICE] violates the express terms of the statute and ignores its history," the lawmakers began. "Congress previously rejected legislative proposals to alter section 6103 and allow the use of return information for immigration enforcement purposes. Instead, Congress and the IRS for decades have done the opposite: promoting voluntary compliance by immigrant taxpayers by protecting their information to ensure tax revenues keep pace with economic activity."

"The data sharing here was illegal and threatens federal revenue, adversely affecting all taxpayers," the lawmakers continued. "It would also compromise taxpayer privacy and raise the possibility of grave consequences for individuals misidentified by ICE, chill participation in the tax system, impact our constituents, and destroy public trust."

"The IRS's address sharing policy therefore violates the statute, improperly displaces Congress's legislative judgments, undermines the confidentiality of taxpayer information and taxpayer reliance, and threatens the national fisc," the lawmakers concluded. "The district court's preliminary injunction preserves Congress's unambiguous command that taxpayer information remain confidential unless and until an agency lawfully satisfies the conditions set forth by Congress and longstanding IRS policy and we urge it be upheld."

In addition to Sen. Cantwell, Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Ron Wyden (D-OR), and 74 U.S. Representatives joined in submitting the brief.

The full text of the brief can be found HERE.