Senate Democrats press IRS chief over staffing testimony
Elizabeth Warren and other Democrats say Frank Bisignano’s IRS staffing claims conflict with reports of urgent hiring needs.
By Theo Nakamura · Staff Writer
· 3 min read
Senate Democrats are pressing IRS chief Frank Bisignano to explain whether he gave Congress a misleading picture of staffing at the tax agency. For taxpayers and everyday investors, the issue is practical: fewer IRS workers can mean slower handling of tax returns, amended filings and correspondence.
In a letter sent Wednesday, Democrats led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts said Bisignano’s earlier testimony appeared to conflict with reports that the IRS is trying to add workers quickly after large staff cuts early in the Trump administration.
Bisignano told Congress in March that he “feel[s] good about the number of employees” at the IRS, according to the letter. He also denied that the agency was understaffed during an April appearance before the Senate Finance Committee.
The Democrats said those statements do not square with recent reporting on IRS hiring. They cited a NOTUS report on an internal memo that requested expedited hiring authority because “ongoing staffing shortages” put the 2026 filing season at risk.
The lawmakers also pointed to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, which said in a June report that staffing problems had contributed to delays at the IRS. The watchdog said the agency had lost more than 31,000 employees as of January 2026.
What Democrats want answered
The letter asks Bisignano to say whether reports about the IRS seeking special hiring authority are accurate. It also asks whether he knew about the internal memo requesting that authority and whether he read it before testifying to Congress.
Warren and the other senators also asked Bisignano to explain the basis for telling Congress there was “no staffing shortage” while the agency was reportedly seeking hiring authority tied to a “critical hiring need.”
The Democrats noted that knowingly making a materially false statement to Congress can carry penalties under federal law. The letter does not say Bisignano has been charged with wrongdoing.
More than a dozen Democrats signed the letter. The group included Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, along with Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, Peter Welch of Vermont and Raphael Warnock of Georgia.
The IRS did not immediately respond to a request for comment, according to CNBC.
Staffing cuts and new scrutiny
The dispute follows broad federal layoffs last year led by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency. At the IRS, Bisignano has said the staffing gap is being addressed through the use of new technologies.
The inspector general’s June report warned that experienced employees who left the agency had institutional knowledge and technical skills that are hard to replace. The watchdog said the IRS faced higher operational risks for the 2026 filing season because of staffing shortages, slow hiring and large backlogs, including amended returns and taxpayer correspondence waiting to be processed.
Bisignano is also facing questions after The Wall Street Journal reported that he had spied on former colleagues at JPMorgan Chase by using security authority to view communications and access sensitive information. Bisignano has denied the Journal’s report.
Bisignano’s roles put him atop agencies that handle large amounts of confidential information about Americans. That makes the staffing and oversight fight more than a Washington personnel dispute: it touches the basic machinery behind tax administration and government data handling.
This story draws on original reporting from CNBC.
