Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2015

Floor Speech

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Mr. ISSA. Mr. Chair, I rise in support of Chairman CRENSHAW and this bill.

This bill is a first step toward holding the IRS accountable for its targeting of conservative tax-exempt applicants for their political beliefs.

The Oversight and Government Reform Committee is conducting a thorough investigation of the IRS targeting.

This investigation is ongoing. But from what we know so far, it is clear that the IRS is in serious need of reform.

We have found an agency that worked in fall 2010 to target conservative tax-exempt groups in wake of the President's campaign against the Supreme Court case, Citizens United.

We have found an agency that called these conservative groups ``very dangerous'' and put them through an unprecedented ``multi-tier'' review.

We have found an agency that coordinated with the Justice Department in October 2010 about the prosecution of tax-exempt groups for their political speech activities.

We have found an agency that sent a 1.1 million-page registry, including confidential taxpayer information, to the FBI.

We have found an agency that has been politicized by its excessive role in a highly partisan law, ObamaCare.

We have found an agency that mysteriously lost two years of e-mail records and an agency that cautions its employees about what they say in e-mail for fear of congressional oversight.

In short, we have found an agency that has become a arm of the Obama Administration rather than an independent administrator of federal tax law.

This bill takes the first steps toward making the IRS work for the American people.

This bill will ensure that the IRS will never again target tax-exempt applicants for their political beliefs.

This bill will prevent the IRS from finalizing a proposed rule that would make permanent in federal regulations its targeting of conservatives.

This bill will also cut back on the misuse of taxpayer dollars for inappropriate conferences and employee bonuses.

Most importantly, Mr. Chair, this bill will begin the long road toward restoring public trust and accountability in the Obama IRS.

I applaud Chairman CRENSHAW for his leadership and I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

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