A letter sent to Internal Revenue Service (IRS) employees will notify employees involved in the 2025 tax season to accept the acquisition offer offered by President Trump until after the taxpayer submits deadline. He said he cannot do so.
The letter said that critical application season positions in “taxpayer services, information technology and taxpayer advocates services” are exempt from the Trump administration from taking over until May 15th. The Associated Press reported.
Taxpayers must file their taxes until April 15th unless an extension is granted.
The acquisition plan is part of the Trump administration's goal of quickly reducing the number of federal workers.
The government had set a deadline Thursday to decide whether federal workers would enter into contracts. All they had to do was reply to an email and say “resignation.” However, the judge extended the deadline until noon Thursday.
Employees who choose to take the transaction will quit their job, but will receive their salary and benefits until the end of September.
It is unclear whether the IRS employee who takes the transaction will receive five months' payments instead, or will win eight months, as with other federal employees who have chosen to leave. I pointed out.
In 2023, the IRS received $80 billion as part of the Inflation Reduction Act. Many of those hired in that budget increase are taxpayer service workers, who help answer calls and help auditors collect money from people and businesses who underreport their income. did.
The IRS was expected to hire thousands of people and help agents get their employment rates back on track. In 2023, staffing levels were 20% lower than in 2010.
The IRS said workers will be relocating from other regions to support tax filing season as federal acquisitions are expected to affect the workforce.
But Charles Lettig, a former IRS commissioner who served under Trump's first administration, said the employment freeze would “having a major impact” on all aspects of the agency's business.
“Fortunately, IRS employees are resilient and have considerable experience in hiring the freeze business,” he posted online. “IRS employees are doing their best with the limited resources and support they receive.”
