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The IRS has gathered $1.3 billion from wealthy individuals evading taxes since last fall, credited to increased enforcement from President Joe Biden’s 2022 climate, health care, and tax legislation, the agency announced Friday.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel visited an IRS facility in Austin, Texas, to highlight this achievement amidst Republican threats of significant budget cuts for the agency should they gain control of the White House and Congress.
In a planned Austin speech, Yellen will emphasize that in 2019, the top 1% of wealthy Americans were responsible for over 20% of all unpaid taxes, placing an undue weight on regular citizens. She stated, “To address this, we’ve directed IRS funding towards substantial investments to combat tax evasion.”
In 2023 and 2024, the IRS initiated efforts targeting high-income individuals neglecting their tax obligations. This initiative focuses on those earning over $1 million with recognized tax debts exceeding $250,000.
According to agency officials, since its inception, nearly 80% of the 1,600 millionaires targeted have made payments, resulting in more than $1.1 billion collected. Additionally, in the initial six months of a new February 2024 initiative, the IRS collected $172 million from 21,000 wealthy taxpayers who hadn’t filed returns since 2017.
Republicans have been pushing for reductions in IRS funding. Former President Donald Trump’s campaign promises significant cuts to federal agencies’ budgets, claiming that Democratic nominee Kamala Harris cast the decisive vote to hire 87,000 new IRS agents to target everyday workers’ tip income.
As part of its modernization efforts, the IRS launched Direct File this year, enabling individuals with straightforward W-2s to calculate and submit their returns directly to the agency. In April, the IRS reported that users of the program claimed over $90 million in refunds. Initially available in 12 states during the 2024 tax season, more states—including Maryland, Oregon, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New Mexico, Connecticut, North Carolina, Wisconsin, and Maine—have joined for the 2025 tax season.