Appeals Court Judges Seem Split on IRS-DHS Tax Info Sharing (1)

A panel of DC Circuit judges seemed split on whether the IRS legally can share taxpayer information with the Department of Homeland Security for purposes of immigration enforcement.

During oral arguments Friday, the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit scrutinized both the MOU signed earlier this year between the two agencies as well as IRC Section 6103, which protects taxpayer information from disclosure except in limited circumstances.

Counsel for the government—who appeared despite the current shutdown—indicated the deal has spurred requests 1.28 million DHS information requests, with the IRS responding to about 4,000 so ...