House Republicans pass bill to slash IRS funding in first act of new Congress

Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) speaks during a weekly news conference in May 2020 on Capitol Hill. Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images

The Republican-controlled House passed a bill Monday night that would slash tens of billions of funding dollars for the Internal Revenue Service.

Why it matters: The bill is unlikely to pass the Democratic-led Senate, but its presence at the top of the House GOP agenda suggests that IRS funding could be a reoccurring sticking point in future budget clashes.

• It's the first piece of legislation passed in the 118th Congress.

Driving the news: The bill that passed 221-210 along party lines targets the IRS funding boost in the Democrats' Inflation Reduction Act passed last year.

The big picture: Republican lawmakers during last year's midterm election zeroed in on the increase in IRS funding — about $80 billion over 10 years.

• GOP lawmakers falsely claimed that President Biden was hiring 87,000 IRS agents to investigate everyday Americans, per the New York Times.

Between the lines: The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office released a report that found House Republicans' IRS legislation would increase the budget deficit by $114 billion over 10 years.

What they're saying: The White House criticized the measure as "reckless" in a statement Monday before the vote.

• "House Republicans are making clear that their top economic priority is to allow the rich and multibillion-dollar corporations to skip out on their taxes, while making life harder for ordinary, middle-class families that pay the taxes they owe," the White House said.

Go deeper: White House fights for extra IRS funding

Editor's note: This article has been updated with additional details throughout.

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