The Department of Homeland Security is asking for the Internal Revenue Service to help crack down on immigration, according to a memo viewed by The New York Times, a move that could suck resources away from the agency’s tax enforcement efforts.
In the memo, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem asked Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to deputize I.R.S. agents to help with immigration enforcement efforts across the country. That work could include auditing employers believed to have hired unauthorized migrants and investigating human trafficking, according to the memo. Of its roughly 100,000 employees, the I.R.S. has more than 2,100 trained law enforcement officers who help investigate violations of tax law and other financial crimes.
“It is D.H.S.’s understanding that the Department of the Treasury has qualified law enforcement personnel available to assist with immigration enforcement, especially in light of recent increases to the Internal Revenue Service’s work force and budget,” Ms. Noem wrote.
A Treasury Department spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Department of Homeland Security has been pushing other law enforcement agencies’ officers to also help with immigration efforts. But the focus on taking I.R.S. agents away from their primary responsibility could align with an effort by President Trump and Republican lawmakers to weaken I.R.S. enforcement.
Much of the Republican ire is aimed at a Biden administration effort to revitalize the I.R.S. with new funding and staffing. Republicans have tried to claw back much of the new money, which was approved by Democrats in Congress in 2022. Mr. Trump has also halted the hiring of new agents and moved to install a new commissioner, Billy Long, to lead the agency. Mr. Long, a former Republican congressman from Missouri, once cosponsored a bill seeking to abolish the I.R.S.
“On Day 1 I immediately halted the hiring of any new I.R.S. agents,” Mr. Trump said at a rally in Nevada soon after he took office. “We’re in the process of developing a plan to either terminate all of them or maybe we’ll move them to the border. I think we’re going to move them to the border.”
Elon Musk and his team have also taken an interest in the I.R.S., with Mr. Musk suggesting on social media that the agency could be deleted. Representatives from the so-called Department of Government Efficiency have sought information about the tax collector’s information technology, with a goal of automating more work to replace the need for human staff members, according to people familiar with the efforts.
Cutting enforcement staffing at the I.R.S. could make it easier for people to avoid paying taxes they owe to the United States government, potentially widening the deficit. The Wall Street Journal reported earlier that D.H.S. was seeking help from Treasury Department staff members at the border.
The post I.R.S. Agents Are Asked to Help With Immigration Crackdown appeared first on New York Times.
