WASHINGTON, DC - Today, Ways & Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal (D-MA) released an unredacted version of a recently completed audit conducted by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA). The version of the audit that TIGTA released yesterday was almost entirely redacted. The New York Times reported that “Treasury and IRS officials insisted on the redactions, after initially pushing to shield the report from public view entirely." The audit was conducted in response to a request from Chairman Neal in May 2018.
Key findings in the audit:
• The cap on the deduction of state and local taxes will prevent nearly 11 million taxpayers from deducting $323 billion in state and local tax payments from their federal tax returns.
• TIGTA found that Treasury and the IRS prioritized the issuance of guidance on the SALT limitations in response to efforts from states seeking to mitigate the financial hardship imposed on their residents.
• The audit also found the Treasury Secretary Mnuchin played a direct role in the issuance of the IRS Notice 2018-54, which sought to block state’s efforts to work around the SALT cap.
The full, unredacted TIGTA audit can be found HERE.
