Treasury IG probing department's refusal to give Democrats Trump's tax returns
By BRIAN FALER
10/04/2019 04:27 PM EDT
Updated: 10/04/2019 04:45 PM EDT
An independent watchdog at the Treasury Department is looking into how the agency handled House Democrats’ demands for President Donald Trump’s tax returns.
Acting Inspector General Rich Delmar said he will investigate who was consulted on the issue and how the department came to reject Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal’s demands for the records, a decision the Massachusetts Democrat is now fighting into court.
Delmar said it’s unclear yet whether his inquiry will also consider a whistleblower's allegations that someone tried to improperly influence the IRS's audits of Trump.
“Chairman Neal has asked Treasury OIG to inquire into the process by which the department received, evaluated and responded to the committee’s request for federal tax information,” said Delmar. “We are undertaking that inquiry.”
The inquiry will likely take “several weeks to a couple of months but that’s a front-end guess,” he said.
“Obviously, it’s a priority.”
The development comes as Neal is suing Trump in federal court to enforce a subpoena for the records under a 1924 law allowing the heads of Congress’s tax committees to examine anyone’s private tax information. Trump has defied a decades-old tradition of presidents voluntarily releasing their returns.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has refused to turn over the filings, saying Democrats do not have a legitimate legislative reason for seeking the documents. The administration says Democrats merely want to search Trump’s records for potentially embarrassing information.
Neal, however, argues that he needs the documents to examine how thoroughly the IRS audits presidents and vice presidents, which is routine after they are elected.
A district court in Washington has scheduled a Nov. 6 hearing on a bid by Trump’s lawyers to have the case dismissed.
The Treasury Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Neal asked Delmar for the probe earlier this week.
“I want to be assured that Treasury, including the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), is enforcing the law in a fair and impartial manner and no one is endeavoring to intimidate or impede government officials and employees carrying out their duties,” Neal said in a letter to Delmar.
Neal asked Delmar to identify everyone within Treasury and the IRS, and anyone outside the agencies, who was “involved in the handling of my requests and all related decisions.”
https://www.politico.com/news/2019/10/04/treasury-inspector-general-trump-tax-028830
By BRIAN FALER
10/04/2019 04:27 PM EDT
Updated: 10/04/2019 04:45 PM EDT
An independent watchdog at the Treasury Department is looking into how the agency handled House Democrats’ demands for President Donald Trump’s tax returns.
Acting Inspector General Rich Delmar said he will investigate who was consulted on the issue and how the department came to reject Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal’s demands for the records, a decision the Massachusetts Democrat is now fighting into court.
Delmar said it’s unclear yet whether his inquiry will also consider a whistleblower's allegations that someone tried to improperly influence the IRS's audits of Trump.
“Chairman Neal has asked Treasury OIG to inquire into the process by which the department received, evaluated and responded to the committee’s request for federal tax information,” said Delmar. “We are undertaking that inquiry.”
The inquiry will likely take “several weeks to a couple of months but that’s a front-end guess,” he said.
“Obviously, it’s a priority.”
The development comes as Neal is suing Trump in federal court to enforce a subpoena for the records under a 1924 law allowing the heads of Congress’s tax committees to examine anyone’s private tax information. Trump has defied a decades-old tradition of presidents voluntarily releasing their returns.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has refused to turn over the filings, saying Democrats do not have a legitimate legislative reason for seeking the documents. The administration says Democrats merely want to search Trump’s records for potentially embarrassing information.
Neal, however, argues that he needs the documents to examine how thoroughly the IRS audits presidents and vice presidents, which is routine after they are elected.
A district court in Washington has scheduled a Nov. 6 hearing on a bid by Trump’s lawyers to have the case dismissed.
The Treasury Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Neal asked Delmar for the probe earlier this week.
“I want to be assured that Treasury, including the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), is enforcing the law in a fair and impartial manner and no one is endeavoring to intimidate or impede government officials and employees carrying out their duties,” Neal said in a letter to Delmar.
Neal asked Delmar to identify everyone within Treasury and the IRS, and anyone outside the agencies, who was “involved in the handling of my requests and all related decisions.”
https://www.politico.com/news/2019/10/04/treasury-inspector-general-trump-tax-028830
