Panhandle Times

During a recent House Ways and Means Oversight Subcommittee hearing, Congressman Nathaniel Moran from Texas criticized the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for its allocation of federal funds. Moran argued that the IRS has prioritized targeting American taxpayers over enhancing cybersecurity to defend against foreign threats such as those posed by China.

"At the end of last year, the U.S. Treasury Department experienced more than one cybersecurity breach by the Chinese government into sensitive U.S. financial information," said Congressman Moran. "In these breaches, Chinese hackers stole thousands of documents. The breach comes amid a number of cybersecurity breaches all over the country due to outdated cybersecurity infrastructure that has proven to be vulnerable to foreign operatives on a number of occasions."

Moran expressed concern that while these threats are increasing, the IRS is focusing its resources on enforcement rather than on necessary updates in cybersecurity and modernization efforts. He pointed out that out of $80 billion received from the Inflation Reduction Act, only $4.75 billion was allocated for system modernization, whereas $45.64 billion was spent on enforcement activities against American taxpayers, particularly affecting the middle class.

"Taxpayers are the client – not the target," concluded Congressman Moran.