Advocating for Accountability
By Rep. Kristi Noem
Just over six months ago, taxpayers got a new tax code. It’s led to tremendous economic growth along with higher wages and better benefits for many. But alongside a new tax code, you deserve a new, more accountable IRS.
There’s no question the IRS has been broken for some time. We’ve seen repeated instances of mismanagement and abuse. In response, I’ve pushed to get rid of an IRS slush fund in order to give taxpayers greater say over how IRS-collected fees are used. We’ve passed legislation to end bonuses to IRS employees until the agency starts to fix its terrible customer service record. And we’ve enacted new accountability measures to make sure taxpayers are never again targeted for their political beliefs.
Most recently, I’ve led efforts to prohibit the IRS from rehiring employees who had already been fired for misconduct. It seems like common sense: if someone is fired for falsifying documents or violating a client’s privacy, they shouldn’t be rehired. But at the IRS, hundreds of employees – including those who’ve mistreated taxpayer data – have been rehired, jeopardizing the privacy of our most sensitive financial information.
Concerns about this hiring practice began building in 2016 when the Treasury Department released a report showing the IRS had rehired more than 200 individuals who had previously been terminated for misconduct or performance issues over a 15-month period. Among other findings, the Treasury Department reported two rehired employees had falsified employment forms by omitting former convictions. Another had been terminated for threatening coworkers. And yet another had “DO NOT REHIRE” stamped on their employment folder after missing about eight weeks’ worth of work. Additionally, more than 100 were rehired after losing their job because of poor performance.
What’s more, about one in five of the rehired employees had new performance issues when they returned to the IRS, according to the federal report. And still, the IRS has shown a complete disregard for changing the practice. Instead, the agency claims that prior conduct or performance issues do not play a significant role in deciding the candidates they choose to hire.
This is not how you responsibly run an agency – especially one that handles sensitive financial information.
The legislation I introduced is practical and straightforward and forces the IRS to adopt commonsense employment practices. More specifically, it strictly prohibits the rehiring of employees previously fired for certain forms of misconduct, particularly those that pose a threat to the privacy of our taxpayer information.
My bill originally passed two years ago in the House, but the Senate wasn’t able to act on the legislation before the end of the congressional session. As such, I reintroduced it and was glad to see the House Ways and Means Committee gave my legislation unanimous support in late June. Next, it will be voted on in the full House, where I’m optimistic it will earn widespread support before again landing on the Senate’s doorstep.
The IRS should work as a customer-service agency. Its employees should treat you with respect and your taxpayer information with the reverence it deserves too. Without question, we have a long way to go to repair this broken, mismanaged agency. But I’m hopeful that reform by reform we can make the IRS genuinely accountable to you.