WASHINGTON, DC - Today, House Ways and Means Oversight Subcommittee Chairman John Lewis (D-GA), Ranking Member Mike Kelly (R-PA), Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal (D-MA), Ranking Member Kevin Brady (R-TX), and bipartisan members of the Oversight Subcommittee introduced the Taxpayer First Act of 2019. This bipartisan, bicameral legislation redesigns the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for the first time in more than 20 years to better serve taxpayers.
Upon the release of the bill, Chairman Neal, Ranking Member Brady, Oversight Subcommittee Chairman Lewis, and Oversight Subcommittee Ranking Member Kelly said in a joint statement:
“The House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee have carefully and thoughtfully developed this legislation over several years, after numerous hearings and roundtables, in a bipartisan, bicameral manner. The goal of the legislation is to modernize the IRS, putting taxpayers first. The commonsense provisions in this bill will protect low-income taxpayers, provide sensible enforcement reforms, and ensure the IRS provides taxpayers and small businesses the assistance they deserve."
Background: The Taxpayer First Act is the culmination of numerous Ways and Means Committee hearings and roundtable discussions on how best to improve the IRS. The bill includes more than 45 provisions across a range of IRS programs. Some of the notable changes the bill seeks to put in place include creating an independent appeals process, strengthening the IRS’s ability to proactively combat identity theft tax refund fraud, and improving the taxpayer experience across the IRS’s suite of taxpayer services.
