The Donald Trump administration has announced a high-intensity restructuring of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), reporting that spring tax revenues are expected to decline by about 10% compared to previous years.
According to a report by The Washington Post (WP) on the 22nd (local time), citing multiple sources, officials from the Treasury Department and IRS expect that federal tax revenues will decrease by more than 10% compared to 2024 after the tax filing deadline on the 15th of next month.
The IRS's total federal tax revenue last year was $5.1 trillion (about 7,474 trillion won), and this year's revenue is expected to decrease by more than $500 billion (about 733 trillion won) compared to that.
This is because many individuals and corporations are delaying their tax filings or are withholding tax payments, thinking that the IRS's major restructuring will prevent the agency from thoroughly examining their accounts. Taxpayers believe that the IRS's mass layoffs will hinder the tax authority's ability to scrutinize their accounts.
Since the Trump administration took office, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has been pursuing a plan to reduce the IRS staff of approximately 90,000 employees by about 20,000. According to WP, the IRS has already laid off more than 11,000 employees.
Earlier, at the end of last month, former IRS commissioners submitted a letter to The New York Times (NYT) regarding the side effects of IRS layoffs. They noted, 'Trump fired 6,700 IRS employees smack in the middle of tax filing season,' adding, 'If the workforce and resources of the IRS decline rapidly, it will also hinder the government’s tax collection efficiency.'