WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Internal Revenue Service Commissioner Danny Werfel on Thursday said the agency will not hire any armed auditors with $80 billion in new funding, in an attempt to dispel Republican claims the agency plans to build an “army” of armed agents.
Werfel, sworn in as the tax agency’s chief on April 4, acknowledged to a House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee hearing that the IRS Criminal Investigations division would hire additional staff authorized to carry firearms, but said this division does not conduct audits.
(Reporting by David Lawder; Editing by Chris Reese)
