WASHINGTON – Cause of Action, a nonprofit government accountability organization, has uncovered an ongoing practice at the Department of Justice whereby Tax Division attorneys, some of whom have worked directly on IRS targeting matters, are assigned to the White House to provide legal advice to the President.
“This ongoing practice raises ethical and legal questions because of these attorneys’ access to confidential taxpayer returns and return information,” said Cause of Action President Dan Epstein. “The public deserves to know whether ethical and legal safeguards have been in place to prevent taxpayer information from getting into the wrong hands — especially when those who access that information work in the White House.”
In order to determine whether such proper safeguards exist, we are today submitting a series of public records requests.
In particular, we’re seeking information about whether appropriate legal and ethical safeguards are in place at both the Office of White House Counsel, as well as the DOJ, to ensure that detailed attorneys are appropriately screened to prevent confidential taxpayer returns and/or return information protected under Section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code from being unlawfully accessed or disclosed.
Read the Freedom of Information Act requests we are filing, as well as the letter we are sending to Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz below.
CoA DOJ OIG Letter by Cause of Action
FOIA’s:
CoA FOIA Request DOJ-JMD re OWHC Details
CoA FOIA Request DOJ-OPR re OWHC Details