GAO tells senators it will investigate IRS’s Free File program
The Government Accountability Office is readying an investigation into the IRS’s Free File program, confirming in a letter to three senators that their request for a probe has been accepted.
Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., Angus King, I-Maine, and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., asked the GAO last month to examine Free File, an IRS partnership with private tax prep companies known for a 20-plus-year history of limited consumer use and reports of hidden costs and data privacy issues.
The response letter from the GAO, made public Monday, said the lawmakers’ request is “within the scope of its authority. We anticipate that staff with the required skills will be available shortly to initiate an engagement.”
The impetus behind the senators’ initial letter was the Trump administration’s cancellation of Direct File — the free electronic filing tool that earned high praise from users in two limited tax seasons — and subsequent promotion of Free File as an adequate substitute.
Many of the questions Warren, King and Wyden want answered by the GAO involve Free File’s private-sector partners; the tax prep industry lobbied heavily against Direct File. The lawmakers seek information about Free File’s costs and what modifications the IRS and its partners have made to stop hidden costs associated with the program.
The senators also asked the GAO to check on Free File’s progress on state filing — which Direct File achieved in its second year — as well as details on various user experience concerns.
“The new GAO investigation will help evaluate the program’s user experience, accessibility, accuracy, and costs, and address broader concerns surrounding Free File’s underperformance and the difficulties that low- and middle- income Americans encounter when trying to truly file their taxes for free,” per a press release sent by Warren’s office Monday.
The Massachusetts Democrat and Wyden, chair of the Senate Finance Committee, have led often withering rounds of questioning regarding the killing of Direct File when Trump Treasury officials have come to Capitol Hill. Both lawmakers are also listed as co-sponsors on a bicameral bill to resurrect Direct File.
The IRS did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication.
