Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) and her colleagues in the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) led 115 House and Senate Democrats in filing a bicameral amicus brief standing up for taxpayer privacy in the case Center for Taxpayer Rights v. IRS, currently before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.
The Democratic lawmakers argued that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) implementation of bulk data transfers to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for immigration enforcement violates the privacy protections of taxpayers enshrined by Congress in section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code.
“The IRS’s decision to share taxpayer data with DHS is in direct contradiction with the law and does absolutely nothing to keep Americans safe. Instead, it has struck fear in hardworking immigrant communities and led to a lack of trust in government to protect taxpayer privacy. I urge the Court to swiftly hold this Administration accountable for its violations of the law,” said Senator Cortez Masto.
For nearly 30 years, across administrations of both parties, the IRS has publicly assured taxpayers their data would be protected, reflecting Congress’s repeated decision to ensure taxpayer data is secured with the strongest data privacy safeguards in federal law. This brief is part of a sustained, coordinated effort to defend the taxpayer privacy protections Congress established nearly fifty years ago.
“The data sharing here was illegal and threatens federal government revenues, adversely affecting all taxpayers. It would also compromise taxpayer privacy and raise the possibility of grave consequences for individuals misidentified by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”), chilling participation in the tax system, impacting our constituents, and destroying public trust,” the lawmakers wrote.
Read the full brief HERE.
Senator Cortez Masto has repeatedly demanded answers from the Trump Administration on the IRS’ cruel and illegal plans to share sensitive taxpayer information with the Department of Homeland Security.
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