The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) laid off around 6,700 last week in an effort to downsize the government under President Doanld Trump and Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). The following week after the layoffs, the IRS acting head Doug O’Donnell is expected to announce his retirement on Tuesday, according to the New York Times.
O’Donnell’s departure comes at a time when millions of Americans are in the middle of the tax-filing season which ends on April 15, 2025. The question on everyone’s minds is whether these changes within the IRS will affect their tax-filing attempts.
READ: DOGE leaders Elon Musk, Vivek Ramaswamy target 94% of remote federal workers (December 9, 2024)
According to NewsNation Now, electronic filings will not be impacted by the layoffs or O’Donnell stepping down. However, the lack of staff might delay any communication efforts with the agency.
The layoffs at IRS have not come as a surprise, as DOGE has been on a warpath, dismissing federal employees at an alarming rate in order to improve government operations and reduce federal spending.
The IRS employees who were impacted by the layoffs and involved in the tax season were reportedly told in early February that they would not be allowed to accept the buyout offer from the Trump administration until mid-May after the tax-filing deadline.
In addition to the layoffs, O’Donnell’s exit follows a bid by personnel from Musk’s DOGE to gain access to taxpayer data. Politico reported that a member of DOGE recently sought access to sensitive IRS systems. However, DOGE will not be able to see individual taxpayers’ information, according to an agreement that sources claimed the Treasury Department reached last week with the White House.
READ: Will Vivek Ramaswamy withdraw from DOGE? (January 20, 2025)
Melanie Krause, the current chief operating officer at the IRS, will take over for O’Donnell as interim chief.
This is undoubtedly a challenging time for many Americans dealing with federal agencies such as the IRS, with many changes taking place under the new Trump administration. Only time will reveal the long-lasting impact of such drastic measures.