Sen. Chuck Grassley wrote the provisions improving the incentives for whistleblowers to come forward about large dollar tax fraud. The provisions were enacted in 2006, ten years ago. Grassley continuously works to make sure the IRS is welcoming to whistleblowers. The law continues to have positive results, according to the IRS’ latest annual report on the whistleblower program. The report shows that since 2007, whistleblowers have helped the IRS to collect $3.4 billion that otherwise would have been lost to fraud. The IRS has approved more than $465 million in whistleblower awards. Grassley made the following comment on the report.
“The whistleblower office is more welcoming to whistleblowers all the time, and the American public benefits as a result. Whistleblowers have helped the IRS recover $3.4 billion that otherwise would have been lost to fraud. Cracking down on big dollar tax fraud is a matter of fairness to the vast majority of taxpayers who pay what they owe. Still, the IRS and Congress can’t rest on our laurels. The IRS still is not as fast it could be in considering whistleblower information. Whistleblowers often have put their livelihoods on the line to come forward, and they deserve timely answers from the IRS. Another challenge is making sure the IRS interprets the whistleblower statute in a favorable light toward whistleblowers, which it doesn’t always do. I look forward to working with the new administration on whistleblower concerns. As I mentioned to Treasury secretary nominee Steven Mnuchin during our meeting, it’s required a lot of oversight to maintain the momentum at the IRS whistleblower office, and I’d like to see a Treasury secretary who will build on the progress.”
