Neal Opening Statement on Committee Investigation of the IRS's Mandatory Audit Program Under the Prior Administration

Thank you all for being here.

Ways and Means is entrusted with great responsibilities. Today the weight of our job is heavy.

Congress serves as a check on the Executive Branch, and our Committee is entrusted with oversight of our revenue system.

We all come to Ways and Means with the goal of creating a fairer tax code. Because at the root of it all, it is our federal tax system that funds the democracy we all cherish.

Our voluntary collection relies on the public confidence that our tax laws are applied evenly and justly, regardless of position or power.

For four years, the Committee has been reviewing how the IRS enforces the federal tax laws against, and ensures compliance by, a president.

A president is no ordinary taxpayer. They hold power and influence, unlike any other American. And with great power comes even greater responsibility.

Our Constitution insists that no American officeholder is above the law.

When concern arose over President Nixon's returns and whether they were properly examined, the Internal Revenue Service established a procedure of mandatory audits for presidents and vice presidents. The policy is simple and states: "individual income tax returns for the President and Vice-President are subject to a mandatory examination."

Other than that, very little is known about this program.

We are only here today because four years ago, our request to learn more about the program under 6103 was denied. This was the first time that this key oversight function was hampered, and our Committee's jurisdiction was challenged.

On behalf of the American people, and to preserve the Congress's oversight abilities, we escalated the matter in court.

After a prolonged battle in federal court, our legislative and oversight authority was affirmed.

Today, we are considering reports that review the program.

I want to be clear that these materials have been reviewed by both sides. When Mr. Brady requested access, I granted it, and his team had ample time for review.

The Committee expected that these mandatory audits were being conducted promptly and in accordance with IRS policies.

However, our review found that under the prior Administration the program was dormant. We know now, the first mandatory audit was opened two years into his presidency. On the day this Committee requested his returns.

We anticipated the IRS would expand the mandatory audit program to account for the complex nature of the former president's financial situation yet found no evidence of that.

This is a major failure of the IRS under the prior administration, and certainly not what we had hoped to find.

But the evidence is clear. Congress must step in.

I've proposed legislation to put the program above reproach. Ensuring IRS conducts yearly, timely examinations while publicly disclosing certain information.

With this statutory requirement, IRS can work toward restoring its integrity and the public's confidence in the Federal tax system.

Our work has always been to ensure our tax laws are administered fairly and without preference, because at times, even the power of a president looms too large.

After Nixon, the IRS put its own guardrails in place.

Today's facts are damning, and this isn't the type of abuse I want for our tax code.

I'm prepared to go one step further because it's my duty. And because that's what it means to serve on the Ways and Means Committee. I hope you join me in what's right for the American people.

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