[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 41 (Friday, March 22, 1996)]
[House]
[Page H2668]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  REIN IN IRS' UNCONSTITUTIONAL POWERS

  (Mr. TRAFICANT asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. TRAFICANT. Mr. Speaker, the Republican Party's new bill makes 
great strides in protecting taxpayers' rights. I commend them for 
including one of my provisions that allows a taxpayer to sue the IRS up 
to $1 million for reckless collections. But this bill is not a great 
bill. It stops short.
  The truth is the bill leaves out changing the burden of proof in a 
tax case. And after all the hype, ladies and gentlemen, a taxpayer in a 
civil tax case will still be considered guilty in the eyes of the law 
and must prove their innocence.
  Once again the IRS reaches in, the IRS wins, the taxpayers lose. The 
IRS says it will cost too much money.
  Mr. Speaker, if the IRS scored the Constitution, they would throw out 
the Bill of Rights.
  I say it is time to tell these ratch-a-frachen, bric-a-bracken bunch 
of pantaloomases that the taxpayers run this show, not the IRS.
  The Republican Party could do something the Democrats did not have 
the courage to do, and we have allowed the taxpayers to be treated as 
dogs, guilty before the law. Shame, Congress. Let us make it a great 
bill.

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