Congress rescinds $41.8B from IRS while $625B tax gap persists

Congress rescinded $41.8 billion of the $79.6 billion the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act provided to the IRS in three rounds: $1.4 billion under the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023, $20.2 billion in FY2024 appropriations, and $20.2 billion in FY2025 appropriations. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that a $20 billion enforcement rescission would reduce federal revenues by $44 billion over a decade — more than two dollars lost per dollar cut. In February 2026, 11 percent of IRS workers accepted buyouts or were laid off, with 18 percent total staff cuts planned through mid-May.