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Trump Transition: Billy Long Nominated to Lead I.R.S. Amid Controversy Over Pandemic Tax Credit

In Citizen
January 18, 2025

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Former Congressman Billy Long has been chosen by Trump to lead the Internal Revenue Service. Long, who represented Missouri for six terms, has been involved in assisting businesses in claiming a tax credit during the pandemic. This tax credit has experienced a significant amount of fraud and has ended up costing the government more money than originally expected.

Written by Andrew Duehren

Updating from the capital

Donald J. Trump, who will soon become President, announced his intention to appoint Billy Long, a former congressman from Missouri, as the head of the Internal Revenue Service. This decision implies that he plans to remove the current IRS leader, who was appointed by President Biden.

Following his defeat in a Senate primary in 2022, Mr. Long has been promoting a tax credit introduced during the pandemic that has been plagued by fraudulent claims, resulting in the government spending billions more than anticipated. In response, lawmakers have attempted to eliminate the tax credit, and the I.R.S. has temporarily halted the processing of claims to identify and reject false applications.

During a podcast interview in 2023, Mr. Long talked about his efforts in assisting businesses with claiming the Employee Retention Tax Credit. He mentioned that neither him nor his colleagues had faced any rejections from the tax agency for these claims. The Employee Retention Tax Credit was established by Congress and former President Trump in 2020 as a way to encourage businesses to continue paying their employees during the economic shutdown.

"We do not deceive anyone by sneaking them through. It is important to us to ensure that they truly qualify for this refund from the I.R.S. with interest."

President Trump made a significant decision to appoint a new leader for the IRS, which came as a surprise. This change comes at a crucial time as the Biden administration has invested a large amount of money to update the agency and strengthen its efforts to collect taxes. Their goal is to enhance customer service and combat tax evasion.

President Biden selected Daniel Werfel in 2022 to be in charge of revamping the IRS. Werfel, with experience in both Democratic and Republican administrations as a management consultant and civil servant, was chosen to lead this effort until 2027.

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