IRS steps toward a new free-file tax return system have both supporters and critics mobilizing

By The Associated Press
Published: Jul. 20, 2023 at 6:47 AM EDT | Updated: 8 hours ago

WASHINGTON (AP) — An IRS plan to test drive a new electronic free-file tax return system next year has got supporters and critics of the idea mobilizing to sway the public and Congress over whether the government should set up a permanent program to help people file their taxes without needing to pay somebody else to figure out what they owe.

On one side, civil society groups this week launched a coalition to promote the move toward a government-run free-file program. On the other, tax preparation firms like Intuit — the parent company of TurboTax — and H&R Block have been pouring millions into trying to stop the idea cold. ... The advocacy groups are exponentially out-monied.

An April AP analysis found that overall, Intuit, H&R Block, and other private companies and advocacy groups for large tax preparation businesses, as well as proponents in favor of electronic free file, have reported spending $39.3 million since 2006 to lobby on “free-file” and other matters. Federal law doesn’t require domestic lobbyists to itemize expenses by specific issue, so the sums are not limited to free-file.

Intuit spent at least $25.6 million since 2006 on lobbying, H&R Block about $9.6 million and the conservative Americans for Tax Reform roughly $3 million. ... In contrast, the NAACP has spent $140,000 lobbying on “free-file” since 2006 and Public Citizen has spent $110,000 in the same time frame.

“What we have on our side is public opinion,” said Igor Volsky, executive director of the liberal Groundwork Action advocacy group. ... Volsky’s organization and leaders from Public Citizen, the Center for the Study of Social Policy, Code for America, the Economic Security Project and others launched the “Coalition for Free and Fair Filing” on Wednesday. The group’s mission is to “ensure all U.S. taxpayers can easily file tax returns and get the tax credits they deserve by safeguarding and expanding” the new IRS program.

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