IRS Employees Now $1.5 Billion in Tax Arrears: A Crisis of Accountability

By Michael Reagan with Michael R. Shannon
Saturday, 20 December 2025 06:00 AM EST

Would you be comfortable with a police force filled with officers who shoplift? How about a fire department retaining arsonists? Or a sanitation department with employees who throw trash into your yard instead of picking it up?

Why, you’d never tolerate that—would you?

And even in the unlikely event such situations occur, the employees would be fired immediately, and the problem would resolve itself.

We hate to disrupt your comforting fantasy, but these scenarios are not hypothetical—they are happening now within our federal government.

According to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, nearly 150,000 federal employees are delinquent on their taxes, owing a staggering $1.5 billion in back taxes.

Specifically, more than 3,300 IRS employees and 2,400 contractors owe at least $29 million in unpaid taxes.

The report also indicates that many of these individuals are not enrolled in any payment plan.

Jon Hartley, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity, stated: “It’s the classic case of rules for thee but not for me.” He further noted that “the tax scofflaws are symptomatic of a larger problem of unchecked government waste and lack of accountability.”

Anyone who has ever faced an IRS inquiry knows this agency is not known for compassion or understanding.

But that’s only because you aren’t an IRS employee yourself.

Everyone involved in evading taxes still works for the IRS, including contractors.

Our sole interaction with the IRS is sending them money by April 15 each year. Yet, we have insights to share: IRS contractors not current on tax liabilities should be terminated immediately.

These contractors are not government employees, and their termination would set a positive example.

Similarly, IRS employees who fail to pay taxes should receive termination letters.

This practice would establish a stronger ethical standard than the current situation of keeping them on payroll.

The continued employment of such individuals highlights the lack of accountability within federal government systems.

While firing federal employees is challenging and Republicans should reform human resources protocols, in the meantime those cashing supervisor’s checks must begin earning that pay.

Otherwise, a temporary measure would be deducting the $29 million in back taxes from IRS management’s collective paychecks until all obligations are resolved.