IRS could end up with 40% fewer staff after workforce reductions: Reports
The notices of reduction of force are scheduled to start going out to employees this week, an internal memo obtained by multiple outlets says.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is poised to reach up to a 40% reduction of its workforce, multiple outlets reported.
An internal memo obtained by Politico and the Federal News Network stated the agency's reduction in workforce would end in a figure as low as 60,000 to 70,000 employees. That would be down from more than 100,00 employees under President Joe Biden. Bloomberg and CNN reported, citing sources with direct knowledge of the matter, that about 20,000 IRS workers had already taken the administration's deferred resignation offer.
The notices of reduction of force are scheduled to start going out to employees this week, the memo reportedly stated.
IRS layoffs come amid widespread federal workforce cuts, tax season and agency chaos
The IRS layoffs will be the latest among Trump and key advisor Elon Musk's mass layoffs and complete closures of some agencies. With controversies over data privacy and staff reductions, the agency has had three leaders since January.
The Department of the Treasury did not respond to a request for comment for this story, but previously confirmed with Paste BN that the IRS grew from about 79,431 employees to 102,309 under Biden and has since fallen back to its pre-Biden size throughout the first few weeks.
The IRS expanded staff with nearly $80 billion in new funding under Biden to further audit corporations and wealthy taxpayers.
More than 120,000 workers in total have been let go from federal agencies as of the end of March, according to a CNN tracker. Several agency layoffs are being challenged in court.
Kinsey Crowley is a trending news reporter at Paste BN. Reach her at kcrowley@gannett.com. Follow her on X and TikTok @kinseycrowley or Bluesky at @kinseycrowley.bsky.social.