The Blaze: Officials to Cough Up Documents That Could Show the IRS Gave Private Taxpayer Data to the White House
Read the full story: The Blaze
But TIGTA never released a report, and that prompted the group Cause of Action to file a Freedom of Information Act request to see the result of its work. TIGTA refused to even confirm its investigation, but in September, a judge said TIGTA officials had to comply with the request from Cause of Action.
Cause of Action said Tuesday that it expects to receive up to 2,500 separate documents that could show improper links between the White House and the IRS, and that it expects to receive those documents by mid-December.
“This disclosure, coming only after Cause of Action sued TIGTA over its refusal to acknowledge whether such investigations took place, and after the Court ordered TIGTA to reveal whether or not documents existed, signals that the White House may have made significant efforts to obtain taxpayers’ personal information,” the group said.
Washington Examiner: Treasury: 2,500 documents ‘potentially’ show IRS sharing taxpayer data with White House
Read the full story: Washington Examiner
In a shocking revelation, the Treasury Inspector General has identified some 2,500 documents that “potentially” show taxpayer information held by the Internal Revenue Service being shared with President Obama’s White House.
The discovery was revealed to the group Cause of Action, which has sued for access to any of the documents. It charges that the IRS and White House have harassed taxpayers.
In an email from the Justice Department’s tax office, an official revealed the high number of documents, suggesting that the White House was hip deep in probes of taxpayers, likely including conservatives and Tea Party groups associated with the IRS scandal.
Cause of Action Statement on White House and IRS Targeting
Cause of Action released the following statement Monday concerning White House and IRS targeting:
Monday the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) informed Cause of Action that there exist nearly 2,500 potentially responsive documents relating to investigations of improper disclosures of confidential taxpayer information by the IRS to the White House. This disclosure, coming only after Cause of Action sued TIGTA over its refusal to acknowledge whether such investigations took place, and after the Court ordered TIGTA to reveal whether or not documents existed, signals that the White House may have made significant efforts to obtain taxpayers’ personal information. This disclosure, following on the heels of TIGTA’s admission that it recovered 30,000 “lost” Lois Lerner emails, renews Cause of Action’s concerns about the decaying professionalism of, and apparent slip into partisanship by, IRS’s senior leadership.
Cause of Action will continue to pursue the truth and to work for IRS accountability.
Washington Free Beacon: Court: Obama Admin Can’t Hide Investigation into Former White House Adviser
Read the full story: Washington Free Beacon
Cause of Action filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit after TIGTA refused to confirm or deny the existence of the investigation in what is commonly known as a “Glomar response.”
“The court has ruled that the federal government cannot hide behind confidentiality laws to prevent Americans from knowing if our President has gained unauthorized access to their tax information,” Cause of Action executive director Dan Epstein said in a statement Tuesday. “This is a decisive win for all Americans and for government transparency and accountability.”
Statement for the Record: Hearing on “The IRS Targeting Scandal: Changing Stories of Missing E-Mails”
Cause of Action submitted a Statement for the Record to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Subcommittee on Economic Growth, Job Creation and Regulatory Affairs. The hearing was on “The IRS Targeting Scandal: Changing Stories of Missing E-Mails.”
Cause of Action Submits Statement to House Oversight Committee Demonstrating IRS’s Improper Use of Tax Code to Block Transparency
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT:
August 7, 2014 Mary Beth Hutchins, (202) 400-4232
Cause of Action Submits Statement to House Oversight Committee
Demonstrating IRS’s Improper Use of Tax Code to Block Transparency
Washington, DC – Cause of Action (CoA), a government accountability organization, submitted a Statement for the record today to the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform (OGR) highlighting the Federal Government’s inconsistent and overbroad application of taxpayer confidentiality laws, therefore blocking transparency. The Statement accompanies an OGR hearing on the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) abuses and targeting of conservative and libertarian groups.
“It’s alarmingly clear that the IRS improperly interpreted the tax code in order to hamper government transparency,” said Cause of Action’s Executive Director Dan Epstein. “The IRS is picking and choosing when and how the law is convenient for its purposes, which is just wrong. Its actions are frustrating public access to records that may demonstrate wrongdoing by Federal officials. Therefore, Congress needs to start us down the path of meaningful reform by preventing agencies from continuing to use laws intended to protect taxpayers as a sword against political enemies and shield for political allies.”
Cause of Action’s Statement for the Record addresses a number of key issues:
- The IRS chooses when and how to release records based on the agency’s level of interest in keeping the subject matter hidden from scrutiny.
- The IRS at times misuses law that was intended to protect confidential taxpayer information as a shield to prevent access to records that could show wrongdoing by Federal officials.
- The IRS, when confronted with its inconsistent use of the law, shockingly stated that the agency is not bound by the actions of its managers.
- The IRS and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration denied access to records about the unauthorized disclosure of taxpayer information to the White House, relying upon an overbroad interpretation of the law.
Read the Statement for the Record here.
About Cause of Action:
Cause of Action is a non-profit, nonpartisan government accountability organization that fights to protect economic opportunity when federal regulations, spending, and cronyism threaten it. For more information, visit www.causeofaction.org.
To schedule an interview with Cause of Action’s Executive Director Dan Epstein, contact Mary Beth Hutchins, mary.beth.hutchins@causeofaction.org