One-Minute of the Week- April 17, 2015

Thank you Mr. Chair. Today is Tax Day, April 15th. And one of the things that I wanted to bring attention to this committee really is the amount of waste and abuse that takes place, not only within the bloated federal government, within the IRS. I serve as the vice chair of financial services oversight committee on the appropriations committee, and on this last go around, we reduced, cut actually, by about one hundred to three million dollars, right? The IRS commissioner was before us to tell us that was too much, it’s too much, the sky is going to fall, we’re not going to be able to process returns, we’re not going to be able to give tax payers assistance. What needs to be told on this floor, Mr. Speaker, is that the IRS sends out tens of billions of misapplied or fraudulent payments, tens of billions. This has to stop. It’s not an issue of not making sure that people pay their taxes. I’m all for making sure things are applied fairly and equitably, but we have an obligation, a responsibility, to make sure money is spent appropriately and efficiently or safeguarded. It’s not our money. And I just wanted today to take the opportunity to recognize the moms and dads, individuals across this country who have written their check to Uncle Sam and they expect us to be good stewards of their hard earned dollars. And so I urge this body to pass, there is a few bills we are working on this week, whether it is balancing the budget, or making sure we eliminate the death tax, we will have our opportunity to make sure that we are holding the federal government accountable.