IRS to Cut Thousands of Workers in the Middle of Tax Season

As tax season begins, the IRS is cutting thousands of probationary workers, following a directive from the Trump administration to reduce federal employment. These layoffs come as 65,000 federal employees have already accepted buyout offers and IRS staff involved in the 2025 tax season are required to stay on until after the filing deadline.

Key Facts:

The IRS is laying off thousands of probationary workers just as tax season begins.
The move follows the Trump administration’s directive to fire most probationary federal employees.
Over 65,000 federal employees have already accepted buyout offers.
IRS employees working on the 2025 tax season are ineligible for buyouts until after the filing deadline.
The Biden administration allocated $80 billion in the Inflation Reduction Act to expand the IRS workforce, funding 87,000 new agents.

The Rest of The Story:

As tax season kicks off, the IRS is shedding thousands of probationary workers, aligning with a broader effort by the Trump administration to downsize federal employment.

While exact numbers remain unclear, these layoffs could affect a substantial portion of the workforce.

President Trump has also mandated that federal employees return to in-person work or face termination.

This push for accountability comes as 65,000 federal workers have already accepted buyout offers.

However, IRS employees actively involved in the tax season must wait until after the filing deadline to take advantage of these offers.

These cuts occur in the wake of the Biden administration’s decision to pour $80 billion into the IRS, a move that significantly expanded the agency’s workforce.

Critics argue that these funds were primarily used to target middle-class Americans through increased audits.

Commentary:

While some may view these layoffs as poorly timed given the busy tax season, the reality is that a bloated IRS workforce was unnecessary in the first place.

The Biden administration’s aggressive expansion of the agency was built on the premise that more auditors would generate more tax revenue.

But in practice, it added layers of bureaucracy and put middle-class taxpayers under the microscope.

The core issue isn’t the number of IRS employees—it’s the complexity of the tax code itself.

If the system were straightforward, there wouldn’t be a need for so many auditors, nor the endless cycle of enforcement and compliance costs.

Instead of hiring tens of thousands of IRS agents to police American taxpayers, the government should focus on simplifying the tax code.

A flat or fair tax system would eliminate the need for loopholes, deductions, and the ever-growing IRS bureaucracy.

Government overreach has expanded to the point where increasing tax revenue takes priority over reducing wasteful spending.

Instead of creating more enforcement jobs, Washington should be cutting unnecessary agencies and making taxation more efficient.

Less complexity means fewer audits, less intrusion, and, ultimately, a tax system that works for the people—not against them.

The Bottom Line:

The IRS is reducing its workforce at a crucial time, but the real issue is the massive expansion that happened under the Biden administration.

A simplified tax code would eliminate the need for an oversized IRS and reduce government overreach.

Instead of hiring more auditors, Washington should focus on making taxation fair, transparent, and efficient for all Americans.