The IRS' Putative Lack of Funds for Tax Forms and Instruction Booklets

Floor Speech

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Mr. Speaker, I rise today to shed light on an issue that many constituents brought to my attention. Tax Day is right around the corner, and as many folks prepare to file their taxes, they are having issues locating the proper forms.

The IRS has notified local libraries--and even congressional offices like mine--that it does not have the money to distribute enough tax forms and instruction booklets so that taxpayers can file their returns accurately and on time. As a result, Mr. Speaker, seniors and those without access to the Internet are scrambling to find 1040 instruction
booklets and tax schedules they need to accurately file their taxes. My office distributed nearly 40 tax instruction books and tax forms during a recent community office hours event in Lebanon County, and the demand continues to grow daily.

Mr. Speaker, the IRS' claim that they can no longer afford to send tax forms to local libraries due to budget cuts is disingenuous. And while needing more than 40 pages of instructions to complete the least complicated tax return is proof enough for simplifying the Tax Code, it is no excuse for the IRS to make paying your Federal taxes an even
bigger headache by making it more difficult for my constituents to get the documents they need. Let's get our tax forms where they are needed.

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