Press Releases

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congresswoman Lori Trahan (MA-03) voted against the dubiously titled Family and Small Business Taxpayer Protection Act, partisan Republican legislation that would undermine the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) ability to go after billion-dollar corporations and millionaires that have utilized loopholes to cheat on their taxes for decades.

“It’s deeply disappointing that the first piece of legislation considered by the House under Republican leadership is a partisan bill designed to let millionaires and billion-dollar corporations cheat on their taxes,” said Congresswoman Trahan. “I voted last year to close these loopholes because I believe every American should pay their fair share – especially the wealthiest one percent. Today’s party-line vote to reopen those loopholes and slow down the tax return process is a slap in the face to working families here in Massachusetts and across our nation who pay their taxes and expect the IRS to function efficiently so they get their returns on time.”

Last year, Congress passed and the President signed into law the Inflation Reduction Act, which closed tax loopholes used by the top one percent of earners to avoid paying $160 billion in taxes each year. The legislation included funding to strengthen the IRS’s ability to audit these wealthy tax cheats to ensure they pay their fair share. The legislation also included a 15 percent corporate minimum tax, which applies only to the approximately 150 corporations earning over $1 billion in profits that have traditionally paid little to no taxes.

The Inflation Reduction Act also included funding to strengthen the IRS’s ability to serve working families. According to the U.S. Department of the Treasury, these funds will enable the IRS to directly serve 2.7 million Americans face-to-face through its Tax Assistance Centers, triple the number served last year. The investments will also empower the IRS to hire 5,000 additional customer service representatives, which will cut phone waiting times in half and make sure Americans’ calls for assistance are answered. Finally, this long overdue federal funding will speed up the IRS’s ability to process and issue refunds.

The Republican legislation passed today along party lines would undermine these provisions, giving millionaire tax cheats and billion-dollar corporations the green light to avoid paying their taxes.

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