DelBene, Gomez, Sánchez Introduce Resolution Demanding Transparency on IRS Sharing of Private Taxpayer Data with DHS

Today, Representatives Suzan DelBene (WA-01), Jimmy Gomez (CA-34), and Linda Sánchez (CA-38) introduced a Resolution of Inquiry (ROI) demanding that the Department of the Treasury and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) turn over all records related to the IRS's illegal sharing of private taxpayer information with immigration enforcement.

This resolution requires Treasury and DHS to provide a full account of how this data-sharing agreement was carried out and whether federal privacy laws were violated. The agencies would be required to turn over the records within 14 days of adoption of the resolution.

For decades, federal law has made clear that taxpayer information is confidential and can't be used for unrelated enforcement purposes. This agreement between Treasury and DHS raises serious concerns about opening the door for sharing confidential tax records, including those filed by immigrants who pay into the system using Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITINs), to be used against them for immigration enforcement.

The resolution focuses on the "Memorandum of Understanding for the Exchange of Information for Nontax Criminal Enforcement" between Treasury and DHS and seeks all related documents that show how taxpayer information was requested, accessed, or shared under that agreement, along with any safeguards that were supposed to protect confidentiality.

"Last week, a court confirmed that the Trump administration illegally provided confidential taxpayer data to DHS, violating the law over 42,000 times. Trump officials' willingness to so brazenly violate people's basic privacy protections demonstrates that everyone's tax data is at risk. Americans deserve answers about how this happened, the full extent of this arrangement, and what's going to be done to prevent it from happening again. It is beyond the pale that Democrats are the only ones calling for oversight and accountability for this breach of data and trust," said Congresswoman DelBene.

"I introduced this resolution because I won't allow confidential taxpayer information to be weaponized to fuel Trump's personal national police force," said Congressman Gomez. "When immigrants are told to file their taxes, follow the law, and contribute to this country, they shouldn't have to fear that the same information they provided in good faith will be handed over and used against them for an immigration raid. We aren't going to stand by and allow our tax system to be hijacked and turned into an arm of Trump's anti-immigrant deportation machine."

"The Trump administration believes it can ignore the law and secretly pass along private taxpayer information," said Congressman Sánchez. "Illegally using sensitive taxpayer data to advance the president's cruel, anti-immigrant agenda is a blatant and dangerous abuse of power. Congress must investigate, determine the full extent of what was shared and hold those responsible for this breach accountable."

The introduction of the resolution comes ahead of IRS CEO, Frank Bisignano, testifying before the House Ways and Means Committee and follows ongoing litigation over the legality of the IRS-DHS data-sharing agreement.