In the United States, Tuesday, April 15 was the deadline for filing federal, state and local income tax returns. Some Americans owed money by April 15, while others are expecting refunds.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is processing millions of federal tax returns. But according to Politico reporters Sophia Cai and Benjamin Guggenheim, the IRS may have a greatly reduced workforce in the future. And Politico’s reporting is receiving a lot of discussion on X, formerly Twitter.
Cai and Guggenheim, in a mid-April article, explain, “The IRS could see a mass exodus of up to 40 percent of its workforce through a combination of buyouts offered by the Trump Administration and widespread layoffs, according to an internal memo obtained by Politico. The memo outlines the agency’s plans to reduce its workforce to between 60,000 to 70,000 employees, down from a previous headcount of roughly 100,000. Notices of ‘reductions in force’ will start going out this week, the memo says, specifying that ‘taxpayer services and compliance will need to be trimmed.'”
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The IRS is among the many U.S. federal government agencies being targeted for mass layoffs by the Trump Administration and the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
“Already, around 22,000 employees at the IRS have opted to take the (Trump) Administration’s latest ‘deferred resignation’ buyout offer, according to a person familiar with the plans granted anonymity to share them,” Cai and Guggenheim report. “Combined, the figures mean the IRS could lose significant portion of its workforce just as the 2025 tax filing season draws to a close Tuesday night.”
The Politico journalists add, “The new figures are on top of 7000 probationary workers the IRS terminated earlier this year and up to 5000 employees who accepted the administration’s first deferred resignation offer.”
It didn’t take X users long to weigh in on Politico’s reporting and downsizing at the IRS.
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Certified public accountant Mike Sylvester tweeted, “The IRS started the year with 100,000 employees.… September 16th there will be about 66,000 left. Most will be near or above retirement age. They will retire and have no one to replace them. No, AI will NOT replace them with numerous 50 year old computer systems and with morons in Congress constantly changing the tax code and making it more complicated. Tax revenue collections will drop, this will increase the budget deficit and encourage people to cheat on their income taxes. It will be painful for tax professionals to deal with. Taxpayers who get notices or have issues will be screwed. What a dumpster fire.”
Sylvester noted that he will be “retiring in 49 months,” adding, “Thank goodness.”
David Brady, another accountant, noted that “everyone” he has talked to on the IRS “hotline recently has been able to answer questions properly.” But he added, “Big changes happening.”
X user Ann Yonan observed, “The planned slimdown in staff will come just as the IRS is processing tens of millions of tax returns, refunds. IRS believes timing is more than coincidence.”
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Read Politico’s full article at this link.
