Recently, I contacted U.S. Rep. Pete Stauber regarding his vote for the Family and Small Business Taxpayer Protection Act. Don't be fooled by its name; this bill is definitely not one to protect working people or small businesses. This bill is to take money away from the IRS so it can't do as many necessary audits, enforce tax law like it should, or make sure we all pay our fair share. The bill would help no one but the very rich, who already have a low audit rate.
According to the Jan. 14 News Tribune article about the bill, the Republican claim that the new funding for the IRS was to target people earning less than $400,000 was just flat out incorrect. Taken directly from the article, "The Congressional Budget Office report … reached the opposite conclusion, saying audit rates for taxpayers with income less than $400,000 would actually remain close to recent levels. … A separate CBO finding … said their bill would add more than $114 billion to the federal deficit."
The only response I got from Rep. Stauber was a short, four-paragraph letter that said, in part, "The IRS should be working for taxpayers, not targeting them." How is enforcing current tax law for higher-income earners "targeting" taxpayers? By his logic, police should have funds rescinded so officers don’t target citizens breaking laws.
I asked for a call to better understand his vote but only received the letter. I guess he is too busy raising the deficit with votes for bills like this one.
Jocelyn Heid
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