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WASHINGTON – Taxpayers are getting better service from more trained IRS professionals and enforcement of the tax code has grown stronger and fairer thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act signed into law two years ago today by President Biden.

There is another sign of progress that doesn’t show up in the data: The added value of having a well-trained workforce with adequate resources, a strong union voice and the support it needs to get the job done.

“The IRS is a better place to work than it was two years ago, and we are not going back,” said NTEU National President Doreen Greenwald. “The decision by Congress and the Biden-Harris administration to rebuild the IRS is paying dividends for taxpayers, businesses and IRS employees, alike.”

In hundreds of IRS work sites across the country, the view from the frontlines has improved dramatically. Employees represented by NTEU say the reduced backlogs – an achievement due in large part to the funds provided by the IRA – have allowed them to focus on keeping current with the daily workload. They have access to more modern technology – and basic office supplies -- that improves their efficiency. And increased hiring has replenished staffing levels in nearly every IRS division, especially customer service.

“If you’re a public servant, where would you rather work: A federal agency withering under a decade of budget cuts and hostility? Or one where Congress has invested long-term, to give you the tools to restore taxpayer services and reduce the federal deficit? The answer is a no-brainer,” Greenwald said.

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates that for every additional $1 spent on enforcing the tax code, revenues to the government increased by between $5 and $9, money that pays the government’s bills and helps lower the amount it needs to borrow.

Progress at the IRS has been impressive considering it has spent just 10 percent of the $57.8 billion in supplemental funding provided by the Inflation Reduction Act after Congress clawed back nearly $22 billion. Revoking any of the remaining funding or using it to supplant regular annual appropriations would jeopardize that progress, Greenwald said.

“The agency’s own watchdog agrees that the IRS has been a good steward of the IRA funds to date, but there remains room for much more improvement,” Greenwald said. “We believe the IRS and its dedicated employees have proven that investing in the agency pays off for our country and NTEU will fight any proposal that turns the clock back to the days of backlogs, slower refunds, unanswered phones and shuttered taxpayer assistance centers.”

NTEU represents employees in 35 federal agencies and offices.