http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/irs-taxpayer-info-hacked/article/2565056
The IRS’ admission that thieves were able to access 100,000 taxpayer accounts is just the latest reason to doubt that any serious reform is taking place at the IRS, House Speaker John Boehner said Wednesday. “Americans have another reason to doubt an IRS that has yet to stamp out the culture of arrogance that led to outrageous waste and taxpayer abuse,” the Ohio Republican said in a statement to the Washington Examiner. “The House Ways and Means Committee is closely following this breach, and we will continue fighting to deliver desperately needed reform and accountability to the IRS.”
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/paul-ryan-on-the-irs-hack-we-need-answers/article/2565054
Ways and Means Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said Tuesday that his committee would learn more about how the data breach happened, and said “we need answers” from the IRS on how it happened.
The IRS has said “criminals” were able to use data they found outside the IRS system, like Social Security numbers and dates of birth, to log into people’s IRS accounts. Officials said thieves tried to log onto 200,000 accounts, and succeeded without about half of those.
The IRS said it would send letters to everyone affected, and would offer free credit monitoring to the 100,000 who had information stolen.
But comments from Boehner and Ryan indicate that may not be enough. Republicans have already been fighting the IRS for more than a year over it admitted to giving conservative groups a hard time when they sought tax-exempt status. The GOP has also hit back against the IRS’s lavish spending on conferences.
Those issues together have prompted the Republican-led House to cut the IRS budget, despite cries from the IRS that those cuts will hurt its ability to enforce tax laws. This year, the IRS said it needs $2 billion more to operate, including nearly $500 million more just to implement Obamacare, a request Republicans are unlikely to grant.
Instead, Republicans have responded with a wave of reform bills, including legislation to ensure the IRS is more transparent, and stop IRS workers from using their personal email at work, and letting groups appeal decisions about their tax-exempt status.
At the start of the year, dozens of House Republicans signed onto a bill from Rep. Rob Woodall, R-Ga., to abolish the IRS altogether.
