The I.R.S. lost roughly a quarter of its employees since President Trump took office, hampering the agency’s ability to conduct audits.
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Trump cuts political interference ban after Census Bureau report, audit revenue plummets under Trump
The Trump administration cut the ban on political interference after an unusual Census Bureau report, and audit revenue at the IRS plummeted under Trump, according to the watchdog. The ledger runs both ways: when the counting rules change, so do the numbers. If the Census gets nudged off course, the audits follow suit. The reconciliation is simple: less interference ban, less audit revenue, more room for the gaps. The size of the gap is counted in missing receipts, not missing dollars. The column gaps like that turn up in the books—hon.
“They say you get what you measure, but first they cut the rule that says you can’t meddle, then the audits dry up. If you’re wondering why the IRS isn’t knocking, it’s because the Census got a nudge and the watchdog’s budget got a haircut. The stakes? The only thing getting counted is who’s missing from the ledger.”
“It’s important to streamline government, and sometimes reforms mean letting agencies do their jobs without interference. The drop in audit revenue is just a sign of efficiency. Did I say efficiency? Maybe it’s just a coincidence. Either way, I don’t see a problem worth counting.”
The receipts
After the Census Bureau issued a report tied to a Trump-aligned think tank, the bureau's parent agency cut language banning political interference from its scientific integrity policy, NPR learned.
This page is a back-issue: the story as it ran, receipts as they were. The current edition is at the front.