The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is preparing for a significant reduction in its workforce, with plans to cut up to half of its 90,000 employees, according to a report from the Associated Press.
This move aligns with the Trump administration’s ongoing efforts to reduce the size of the federal government and improve efficiency.
The cuts are reportedly part of a broader initiative spearheaded by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), an agency tasked with streamlining government operations.
The IRS, which currently employs around 90,000 people, has already seen job losses earlier this year, with approximately 7,000 probationary employees losing their positions in February.
To soften the impact of these layoffs, many IRS employees have been offered a “deferred resignation program.” This buyout initiative allows workers to resign voluntarily while receiving full pay for several months, giving them time to seek new employment opportunities.
However, not everyone is convinced that these cuts will lead to a more efficient government. Former IRS Commissioner John Koskinen has expressed deep concerns over the scale of the reductions.
Writing in the New York Times, Koskinen warned that aggressive downsizing of the IRS would make the agency “dysfunctional.” He argued that a weakened IRS would