Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this story mistakenly said Holly Paz had been fired. This has been corrected, and the Washington Examiner regrets the error.
The IRS has proposed the removal of an official following an internal review that found she targeted conservative tax-exempt organizations under the Obama administration.
Holly Paz, IRS commissioner of the Large Business and International Division, was placed on administrative leave in late July. News of the proposed removal was reported by Fox News. She remains on leave.
In 2013, the Obama administration was scrutinized when the IRS applied unfair criteria against conservative groups applying for nonprofit organization status. The federal agency targeted tax-exempt applications featuring conservative-friendly phrases such as “Tea Party” or “Constitution.”
Back then, the Treasury Department’s inspector general for tax administration concluded the IRS used “inappropriate criteria” when considering such applications.
Paz, who was top IRS official Lois Lerner’s deputy at the time, was involved in handling the documents. Lerner resigned over her role in the political controversy, while Paz continued to serve at the agency.
The IRS conducted its internal review after a watchdog report concluded that the Large Business and International Division, led by Paz, consisted of President Donald Trump’s critics and partisan Democrats who openly opposed the Trump administration’s agenda. The conservative American Accountability Foundation published the report in April.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has sought to “de-weaponize” federal agencies, particularly focusing on the IRS. Bessent is the IRS acting commissioner after Trump removed Billy Long as the tax agency’s chief last month.
TOP IRS DIVISION APPEARS PACKED WITH ANTI-TRUMP OFFICIALS
The Trump administration has cut over 25% of the IRS’s 100,000-person workforce since January, primarily through federal buyouts and a restructuring effort across the agency.
