Human rights activists have raised concerns about the Department of Government Ethics (DOGE) potentially gaining access to sensitive tax and medical data stored in the US tax service (IRS) and social security department (SSA). This information includes details about disability, adoption of children, financial data, and immigration status of citizens.
There are fears that if this data is leaked, it could compromise citizens’ trust and impact the number of tax returns filed. Additionally, there are worries about the political use of this information, especially in light of statements made by the Trump administration.
The White House has confirmed that DOGE will have access to the IRS tax system but assured that sensitive information will not be provided. Their role will be to identify cases of fraud and political bias in data processing. Following these developments, acting SSA commissar Michel King resigned, refusing to grant DOGE access to data.
A lawsuit was filed on February 17 against the IRS and DOGE, requesting to prohibit access to taxpayer data and delete any information already obtained. The lawsuit highlights that IRS data includes details on donations, dependents, tax investigations, financial reports, and personal income. The SSA also holds information on diagnoses, conclusions, and citizenship for over 70 million individuals.
Despite strict laws protecting tax data in the US since 1976, unauthorized disclosure is punishable by imprisonment. In January 2024, a former IRS contractor received a five-year sentence for leaking thousands of tax returns.
Concerns have been raised over DOGE’s request for access to the Integrated Data Retrieval System (IDRS), a particularly protected system. This has caused alarm among experts as even IRS commissars do not have full access to it, with only a select number of employees and contractors permitted to work with it.
Human rights organizations are worried that the lack of transparency regarding DOGE’s need for access and data protection measures could erode trust in the tax system. Failure to provide adequate explanations may jeopardize the voluntary compliance with tax laws, ultimately impacting the country’s budget.