On July 30, the Senate Finance Committee overwhelmingly approved the bipartisan Taxpayer Assistance and Service (TAS) Act, S. 3931, with a 26-1 vote, setting the package up for consideration by the full Senate. The TAS Act includes over 60 bipartisan proposals – several of which have already advanced in the House.
Finance Chair Mike Crapo (R-ID) released modifications to the bill prior to the hearing. Included were revisions to the electronic filing identification number (EFIN) provisions and a clarification regarding tax-exempt entities’ appeal rights. In addition, Crapo called for boosted penalties for unauthorized release of taxpayer information.
The modified bill also incorporated the Preventing Tax Fraud and Identity Theft Act, which would require information returns for certain income categories to be filed with the IRS by January 31 of the year following the calendar year to which the return relates. That provision would have a $385 million positive revenue impact, according to the Joint Committee on Taxation’s analysis. It would bring the total cost for the TAS Act down to just $49 million.
Dave Bohrman, vice president of strategic intelligence at Cogency Global, stressed the level of detail in the TAS Act, which he said was an indicator that “Congress is receiving a lot of pressure to make the IRS a better, more effective administrative system as a whole for the taxpayers.”
Overall, Bohrman sees the TAS Act as “a legislative partnership with the modernization efforts that are inside of the four walls of the IRS as it stands today.”
Widespread support for the TAS Act
Bohrman told Checkpoint he’s heard of “no major opposition” to the bill. He added that if the TAS Act is signed into law, it would be the first congressional effort to reform tax administration since the 2019 Taxpayer First Act.
The TAS Act includes multiple suggestions offered by National Taxpayer Advocate Erin Collins. After the favorable vote, Collins praised the committee’s work on the bill. “[T]he TAS Act would go a long way toward better protecting taxpayer rights, reducing unnecessary burdens, and improving the tax administration process for millions of taxpayers,” she said. “Each of these measures addresses a distinct issue. Together, they make far-reaching practical and common-sense improvements that would help the IRS better serve taxpayers.”
“The TAS Act represents an important step towards creating a more effective and taxpayer-focused tax administration system,” said AICPA Vice President of Tax Policy and Advocacy Melanie Lauridsen. “This bill includes provisions that will strengthen taxpayer support while also helping ensure paid tax preparers meet minimal ethical and professional standards that reinforce Americans’ trust in our profession and in the tax system,” she added.
However, Lauridsen said AICPA is “disappointed” other key tax administration proposals were not included in the package. The group specifically noted the Simplify Automatic Filing Extensions (SAFE) Act, H.R. 990. Introduced as a bipartisan, stand-alone bill in the House last year, the SAFE Act aims to streamline the tax filing extension process.
Dem effort to take on Trump-IRS immunity deal fails
Committee Democrats pushed to append a provision to the TAS Act that would bar Treasury and the IRS from entering into or giving effect to an agreement or order that purports to affect a federal tax matter involving the president, his family members, or related entities. The move came amid controversy over the settlement of President Trump’s $10 billion suit for the release of his tax returns – and acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s order releasing Trump, his family, and affiliated parties from claims related to tax returns filed before May 19, 2026.
“As of right now, everybody in America is subject to audit – except the Trump family,” said Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-OR). “This immunity deal is a brazen abuse of our nation’s laws in a system that forces everyone else to play by the rules,” he added.
Wyden said the proposed amendment, entitled the Presidential Tax Accountability and Audit Integrity Act, would “rein in Trump’s corruption, and permanently ban the IRS and Treasury Department from entering into agreements like this in the future.”
“Every member in this room will have a chance to go on the record as either enabling this blatant Trump corruption, or reining it in,” said Wyden.
The amendment failed on party lines, 13-14.
Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), the sole committee member voting against the TAS Act, attributed her “no” vote to the failed amendment.
“Any serious effort to make the IRS work better for American taxpayers must ensure that everyone is treated fairly and equally under the law,” said Warren. “[W]hile I support this committee’s work to make the IRS work better for taxpayers, I cannot support a bill that rubber stamps Donald Trump’s corruption,” she added.
