[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 115 (Tuesday, July 31, 2012)]
[House]
[Pages H5414-H5416]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
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FEDERAL EMPLOYEE TAX ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 2012
Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 828) to amend title 5, United States Code, to provide that
persons having seriously delinquent tax debts shall be ineligible for
Federal employment, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 828
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Federal Employee Tax
Accountability Act of 2012''.
SEC. 2. INELIGIBILITY OF PERSONS HAVING SERIOUSLY DELINQUENT
TAX DEBTS FOR FEDERAL EMPLOYMENT.
(a) In General.--Chapter 73 of title 5, United States Code,
is amended by adding at the end the following:
``SUBCHAPTER VIII--INELIGIBILITY OF PERSONS HAVING SERIOUSLY DELINQUENT
TAX DEBTS FOR FEDERAL EMPLOYMENT
``Sec. 7381. Definitions
``For purposes of this subchapter--
``(1) the term `seriously delinquent tax debt' means an
outstanding debt under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 for
which a notice of lien has been filed in public records
pursuant to section 6323 of such Code, except that such term
does not include--
``(A) a debt that is being paid in a timely manner pursuant
to an agreement under section 6159 or section 7122 of such
Code;
``(B) a debt with respect to which a collection due process
hearing under section 6330 of such Code, or relief under
subsection (a), (b), or (f) of section 6015 of such Code, is
requested or pending;
``(C) a debt with respect to which a levy has been issued
under section 6331 of such Code (or, in the case of an
applicant for employment, a debt with respect to which the
applicant agrees to be subject to a levy issued under such
section); and
``(D) a debt with respect to which relief under section
6343(a)(1)(D) of such Code is granted;
``(2) the term `employee' means an employee in or under an
agency, including an individual described in sections 2104(b)
and 2105(e); and
``(3) the term `agency' means--
``(A) an Executive agency;
``(B) the United States Postal Service;
``(C) the Postal Regulatory Commission; and
``(D) an employing authority in the legislative branch.
``Sec. 7382. Ineligibility for employment
``(a) In General.--Subject to subsection (c), any person
who has a seriously delinquent tax debt shall be ineligible
to be appointed or to continue serving as an employee.
``(b) Disclosure Requirement.--The head of each agency
shall take appropriate measures to ensure that each person
applying for employment with such agency shall be required to
submit (as part of the application for employment)
certification that such person does not have any seriously
delinquent tax debt.
``(c) Regulations.--The Office of Personnel Management, in
consultation with the Internal Revenue Service, shall, for
purposes of carrying out this section with respect to the
executive branch, promulgate any regulations which the Office
considers necessary, except that such regulations shall
provide for the following:
``(1) All due process rights, afforded by chapter 75 and
any other provision of law, shall apply with respect to a
determination under this section that an applicant is
ineligible to be appointed or that an employee is ineligible
to continue serving.
``(2) Before any such determination is given effect with
respect to an individual, the individual shall be afforded
180 days to demonstrate that such individual's debt is one
described in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), or (D) of section
7381(a)(1).
``(3) An employee may continue to serve, in a situation
involving financial hardship, if the continued service of
such employee is in the best interests of the United States,
as determined on a case-by-case basis.
``(d) Reports to Congress.--The Director of the Office of
Personnel Management shall report annually to Congress on the
number of exemptions made pursuant to subsection (c)(3).
``Sec. 7383. Review of public records
``(a) In General.--Each agency shall provide for such
reviews of public records as the head of such agency
considers appropriate to determine if a notice of lien (as
described in section 7381(1)) has been filed with respect to
an employee of or an applicant for employment with such
agency.
``(b) Additional Requests.--If a notice of lien is
discovered under subsection (a) with respect to an employee
or applicant for employment, the agency may--
``(1) request that the employee or applicant execute and
submit a form authorizing the Secretary of the Treasury to
disclose to the head of the agency information limited to
describing whether the employee or applicant has a seriously
delinquent tax debt; and
``(2) contact the Secretary of the Treasury to request tax
information limited to describing whether the employee or
applicant has a seriously delinquent tax debt.
``(c) Authorization Form.--The Secretary of the Treasury
shall make available to all agencies a standard form for the
authorization described in subsection (b)(1).
``(d) Negative Consideration.--The head of an agency, in
considering an individual's application for employment or in
making an employee appraisal or evaluation, shall give
negative consideration to a refusal or failure to comply with
a request under subsection (b)(1).
``Sec. 7384. Confidentiality
``Neither the head nor any other employee of an agency
may--
``(1) use any information furnished under the provisions of
this subchapter for any purpose other than the administration
of this subchapter;
``(2) make any publication whereby the information
furnished by or with respect to any particular individual
under this subchapter can be identified; or
``(3) permit anyone who is not an employee of such agency
to examine or otherwise have access to any such
information.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The analysis for chapter 73 of
title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end
the following:
``SUBCHAPTER VIII--INELIGIBILITY OF PERSONS HAVING SERIOUSLY DELINQUENT
TAX DEBTS FOR FEDERAL EMPLOYMENT
``7381. Definitions.
``7382. Ineligibility for employment.
``7383. Review of public records.
``7384. Confidentiality.''.
SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.
This Act and the amendments made by this Act shall take
effect 9 months after the date of enactment of this Act.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Utah (Mr. Chaffetz) and the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Maloney)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Utah.
General Leave
Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their
remarks and include extraneous materials on the bill under
consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Utah?
There was no objection.
Mr. CHAFFETZ. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, almost every Federal employee that I have run into,
they're good, hardworking, patriotic people trying to do the right
thing; but unfortunately we have a few that really aren't doing the
right thing.
I want to highlight a problem that we see out there. There are those
Federal employees that are delinquent on their Federal taxes. Now, this
becomes egregious, I think, because of the nature of their employment--
they're working for the Federal Government, they're being paid by the
Federal taxpayers, and yet they're not paying their own Federal taxes.
Unfortunately, over the course of time this situation has not gotten
better. People are dealing with very difficult situations, they have
adopted something or somehow in their life they've gotten upside down.
The nature and the spirit of this bill, the bill that I am the chief
sponsor on, is to find those people who are trying to do the right
thing--they're trying to rectify it, they're trying to come up with a
plan--we're not going after those people. But for the other group of
people who are just totally ignoring the law
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and they're not living up to their obligation, they're not paying their
Federal taxes, there ought to be more of a consequence.
The number of delinquent employees has remained fairly consistent
since the year 2004. Remarkably, there were 102,794 employees who were
delinquent with their Federal taxes back in 2004. Fast forward to 2010,
that number is still 98,291. In fact, nearly 700 people on Capitol Hill
are delinquent on their Federal taxes. Unfortunately, the dollar amount
of these delinquencies from 2004, which was $599.8 million, has grown
to over $1 billion--in fact, it's $1.034 billion unpaid taxes from
Federal employees.
So, employees who consciously ignore the channels and processes in
place to fulfill their tax obligations must be held accountable. The
Federal Employee Tax Accountability Act addresses noncompliance with
our tax laws by prohibiting individuals with seriously delinquent tax
debt from Federal civilian employment. This should be common sense, and
I hope it's bipartisan.
Most taxpayers, including government employees, file accurate tax
returns and pay the taxes they owe on time, regardless of their income.
Federal employees and individuals applying for Federal employment
should do the same--always.
In 2010, the most recent year for which the IRS data is available,
more than 98,000 civilian Federal employees owed more than $1 billion
in taxes. The average delinquency rate for Federal civilian employees
was 3.33 percent, up from 2.29 percent in 2008.
The vast majority of Federal workers who owe taxes owe them from
income that they earned. The intent of this bill is simple. If you're a
Federal employee or an applicant for Federal employment, you should be
making a good faith effort to pay your taxes or to dispute them, as
taxpayers have the right to do.
Under this bill, H.R. 828, individuals having seriously delinquent
tax debts are ineligible for Federal civilian employment in the
executive and legislative branch. ``Serious tax delinquent'' is defined
as an outstanding Federal debt for which the notice of lien has been
filed publicly.
H.R. 828 exempts employees who are working to settle tax liabilities
by excluding Federal tax debts that are being paid in accordance with
an installment agreement, offer of compromise, or wage garnishment; for
which a due process hearing or request for relief from joint and
several liability is requested or pending; or for which relief has been
granted. So, there are exceptions. We're not trying to cut somebody off
at the knees if they're trying to do the right thing.
The bill requires individuals applying for Federal jobs to certify
that they are not seriously delinquent in their taxes. Agencies will
also conduct periodic reviews of public records for tax liens. And
individuals with seriously delinquent tax debt may avail themselves of
existing due process rights, including before the Merit Systems
Protection Board. In addition, individuals will have 6 months to
demonstrate that their tax debt is not ``seriously delinquent.''
The bill also provides a financial hardship exemption for employees.
Federal employees are called to account for paying taxes by the code of
ethics for the executive branch. The code of ethics dictates that
Federal employees must ``satisfy in good faith their obligations as
citizens, including all just financial obligations, especially those
such as Federal, State or local taxes that are imposed by law.'' Thus,
the necessity of this situation. Unfortunately, it's getting worse,
it's not getting better.
We have an obligation, I think, to the American taxpayers and to the
overwhelming majority, the 96-plus percent of Federal workers, who are
doing the right thing. Thus, I urge the adoption of this bill.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mrs. MALONEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, as Chairman Issa stated during the Oversight Committee's
consideration of this bill, H.R. 828, this is largely a symbolic
gesture.
We all agree that everyone, including Federal workers, should pay
their taxes. Members on both sides of the aisle emphasize the need to
hold Federal employees accountable for tax obligations. However, the
overwhelming majority of Federal workers take their income tax
obligation seriously.
The tax compliance rate for Federal employees is much higher than for
the American public. According to the most recent statistics from the
Internal Revenue Service, more than 96 percent of Federal workers pay
their taxes on time and do not owe money to the government.
In addition, there are already existing laws and regulations that
address tax debts owed by Federal employees, and the IRS has a system
in place for levying up to 15 percent of Federal wage payments made to
delinquent taxpayers until the tax debt is satisfied.
The Joint Committee on Taxation has concluded that H.R. 828 would
have ``negligible impact'' on revenue. In fact, implementation of the
bill would have a small cost. So, I'm not certain that this bill will
have any significant impact whatsoever.
I strongly believe that the House's efforts and energy would be
better spent by focusing on measures to strengthen the Federal civil
service and improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the Federal
Government rather than by making symbolic gestures that reinforce a
negative view of the Federal workforce.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
There is a need for this. I wish there wasn't a need for this. There
are other more pressing things that we should be focused on. But this
is $1 billion in uncollected taxes, taxes that are due by Federal
workers.
Again, I don't want to disparage the reputation of all Federal
employees, but this small group--in excess now of 3 percent of our
Federal workers--is putting tarnishment on those other employees.
I want to point to a January 23, 2012, Federal Eye article--Ed
O'Keefe is the author. Let me read a paragraph from his article. He
said:
But on Capitol Hill, 684 employees, or almost 4 percent, of
the 18,000 congressional staffers owed taxes in 2010, a jump
of 46 workers from 2009. Four percent of House staffers owed
$8.5 million, and 3 percent of Senate employees owed $2.1
million, the IRS said.
We actually get a report from the IRS, and it has a breakdown of the
number of employees by department who aren't paying their Federal
taxes. The Department of Treasury, they have one of the lowest
percentages. Less than 1 percent of their employees don't pay their
taxes, but they still have 1,181 employees at the Department of
Treasury who aren't paying it. There's an uncollected $9.3 million.
At the Federal Reserve, the Board of Governors, smaller in terms of
their numbers, but you still had 91 employees at the Federal Reserve
not paying their taxes--4.86 percent of their employees not paying over
$1.2 million in taxes.
If you go on and look here, this one is my personal favorite. The
U.S. Office of Government Ethics has the worst compliance rate of our
Federal workers. If you put that in a movie, you wouldn't believe it.
But nearly 6.5 percent of their employees don't pay their Federal
taxes, the U.S. Office of Government Ethics.
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Unfortunately, there is a need for this.
I would like to highlight, we did this in a very bipartisan way
within committee. There was an amendment offered by Mr. Lynch of
Massachusetts, who I have the greatest respect for. He offered an
amendment. We accepted that. When we accepted that, he was quoted as
saying, and I quote from Mr. Lynch:
With that refinement here, a friendly amendment, I
certainly would vote for the bill if the amendment were
included.
I hope we can do this in a bipartisan way. We have an obligation, a
duty to do this.
I reserve the balance of my time, Mr. Speaker.
Mrs. MALONEY. Mr. Speaker, I have no additional speakers. I yield
back the balance of my time.
Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, let me say, in conclusion here, look, if
Federal workers aren't paying their Federal taxes, they should be
fired. If they're
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not paying their Federal taxes and they want employment here, they
should not be employed as Federal workers.
We have a duty and an obligation. This is a billion dollar problem in
search of a solution. This is the solution. We should do so in a
bipartisan way.
And with that, I urge the adoption of this bill.
I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Utah (Mr. Chaffetz) that the House suspend the rules and
pass the bill, H.R. 828, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this question will be postponed.
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