President Donald Trump abruptly fired IRS Commissioner Billy Long on Aug. 8, less than two months after the former Missouri congressman stepped into the role. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will serve as acting commissioner in the near term. The New York Times first broke this news, which the administration confirmed to other media outlets.
Even in an administration where there has been significant upheaval and reorganization throughout federal agencies, the IRS has had a particularly tumultuous year. The service had four acting commissioners before Long’s confirmation, following the resignation of Danny Werfel, who was appointed by former President Joe Biden in 2023. The IRS also experienced a 26% decline in its workforce between the beginning of this year’s tax filing season and June, according to the midyear report from National Taxpayer Advocate Erin Collins.
Long, a six-term congressman and longtime member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, served as a tax and business consultant between leaving office in 2021 and his nomination to lead the IRS. His promotion of tax credits during that period — including the Employee Retention Tax Credit and what the IRS has said is a nonexistent tribal tax credit — became a topic of scrutiny from Senate Democrats during the nomination process. During his brief tenure, Long made news by stating at a tax summit of enrolled agents that he expected the 2026 tax filing season to open several weeks later than it has in recent years — a comment the service quickly walked back — and that the IRS’ Direct File program was “gone” after just two filing seasons.
Whoever next steps in as commissioner will play a role in carrying out the Trump administration’s transformation of the tax collection agency, which focuses on a rollback of the expansion the agency saw under the Biden administration. The IRS will also oversee rules and regulations related to the numerous tax provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), enacted in July.
Long wrote in a social media post Aug. 8 that he will be nominated to serve as the next ambassador to Iceland.
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