South SFV Today

Washington, D.C. – In advance of a much-anticipated report by the IRS on May 16th, 2023 regarding free direct e-filing, Congressman Brad Sherman (CA-32) and Congresswoman Katie Porter (CA-47) were joined by 16 other Members of Congress in sending a letter to the IRS urging them to create a free, direct e-file tool for American taxpayers.

Previously, on April 25, 2023, Senators Tom Carper and Elizabeth Warren led a letter to the IRS similarly imploring the IRS to expand access to e-filing options in their May 16th report.

“The IRS established the free e-filing program in 2003 but it did so in partnership with major tax preparation software companies that frequently mislead taxpayers into paying for their services,” said Congressman Brad Sherman. “For simple tax returns, the IRS should make it quick and easy to file taxes – and file them directly with the IRS itself, which already has all your income data. I look forward to the IRS’s report on e-filing and encourage the IRS to take steps toward establishing a free direct e-filing option in order to improve the efficiency of our tax system and increase access to critical social programs like the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC).”

“It should be easy and free for Americans to file their taxes,” said Rep. Katie Porter. “Instead, taxpayers are collectively cheated out of billions of hours and dollars each year, because corporate special interests spend millions lobbying to keep the tax system complicated. The IRS can finally put taxpayers before big corporations – they should do so.”

“The problems caused by complicated tax filing – namely the cost, lost time and added worry for filers – can be solved by the IRS creating a direct file tool,” said Robert Weissman, President of Public Citizen. “It’s far past time to provide a public option for tax filing instead of having so many taxpayers rely on corporations that have tricked low-income filers into paying when they should have been filing for free or provided sensitive data to outside parties. Public Citizen thanks Congressman Sherman and Congresswoman Porter and their colleagues for their leadership in encouraging the IRS to act quickly to implement a government-run direct file tool.”

“IRS direct file has the potential of changing the game on how people file their taxes and access their tax credits. This will benefit millions of hard-working people striving to achieve economic security every day. I applaud leaders in the House for coming together to voice support for this proposal and bringing attention to the fact that people want the option for free and simplified tax filing,” said Adam Ruben, Vice President of Campaigns and Political Strategy for Economic Security Project.

“Filing taxes can be stressful and time-consuming for everyone, and for millions of families it stands between them and vital tax credits that can help them pay the bills and save for the future. Simplifying tax filing by developing an accessible IRS direct file tool is critical to lift the burden off families, ensure everyone can access the refundable credits they are owed, and realize the potential of these credits to promote economic security and advance racial and economic equity,” said Megan Martin, Executive Vice President at the Center for the Study of Social Policy.

“Tax preparation companies like Intuit have spent over $44 million to block a free tax filing option and have scammed millions of taxpayers into paying to file their taxes,” said Igor Volsky, Executive Director of Groundwork Action. “The IRS must ensure that all Americans have the choice to file through an easy and straightforward public option that would be available to anyone who wants it and take minutes to complete.”

“The expanded Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit empowered millions to lift themselves out of poverty, and it must be restored. But even as RESULTS advocates and allies work to make that happen, we know many families will not be able to access the tax credits owed to them because filing taxes is an onerous process,” said Joanne Carter, Executive Director of RESULTS. “Taxpayers spend an average of 13 hours and $250 filing their taxes each year, which creates an impossible barrier for some, especially families most affected by poverty and oppression. A free IRS tool that pre-populates much of the needed information with data already maintained by the IRS would reduce the burden of filing for millions of families and help advance equity in our tax code.”

Section 10301 of the Inflation Reduction Act required the IRS to establish a taskforce to draft a report within 9 months that includes: (1) an assessment of the costs of free direct e-filing; (2) a survey of taxpayers’ support for free direct e-filing; and (3) a third-party evaluation on the feasibility of the IRS implementing a direct free e-filing system. The Sherman-Porter letter urges the IRS to endorse the development of a direct file tool to increase efficiency in the tax system, decrease costs to the American taxpayers for filing their taxes, and increase access to vital tax credits like the EITC and CTC.

Original source can be found here.