[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 110 (Friday, June 28, 2019)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E865]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





   FINANCIAL SERVICES AND GENERAL GOVERNMENT APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2020

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                            HON. JOHN LEWIS

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 25, 2019

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the state of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 3351) making 
     appropriations for financial services and general government 
     for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2020, and for other 
     purposes:

  Mr. LEWIS. Mr. Chair, I rise in strong support of H.R. 3351, the 
fiscal year 2020 Financial Services and General Government 
Appropriations Act.
  Let me begin by thanking Chairman Quigley and Chairwoman Lowey for 
their leadership on this important bill. I would also like to recognize 
their staff for reaching out and listening our concerns and priorities 
in this bill.
  The Federal Government shutdown, changes to the tax code, and 
difficulty accessing experts increases IRS casework in many District 
Offices, including my own. As the chair of the Ways and Means Oversight 
Subcommittee, I believe it is critically important that Congress 
restore desperately needed funding for the Internal Revenue Service 
(IRS).
  For many years, the National Taxpayer Advocate underscored the 
necessity of providing the agency with the resources, staff, and tools 
it needs in order to improve taxpayer services. Although Congress needs 
to restore the agency's funding to at least $12.3 billion, I believe 
that this bill finally moves the agency in the right direction.
  I would also like to reiterate my appreciation for the Appropriations 
Committee's support when the House considered the Taxpayer First Act. 
As you know the Taxpayer First Act, which the House and Senate adopted 
earlier this year, is the most important improvement to taxpayer 
services in a generation. We worked hard to correct misinformation that 
our bill would tie the hands of the IRS and hurt taxpayers' options. 
During a time when there is so much tension and rush to judgment, our 
coalition remained thoughtful and fair.
  As you know, Mr. Chair, the Taxpayer First Act resulted from years of 
bipartisan hearings, roundtables, and a public comment period on the 
draft bill. This legislation authorizes $30 million dollars in matching 
grants for the popular Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program, which 
helps low and moderate-income taxpayers complete and file their taxes. 
The Taxpayer First Act also protects certain low-income taxpayers from 
the private debt collection program, and authorizes desperately needed 
new initiatives to protect and serve taxpayers, who are victims of 
identity theft. I hope that this bipartisan, bicameral bill will become 
public law in the near future.
  In closing, I would also like to recognize the Chairman's hard work 
to remove problematic policy riders from the FY20 House bill. I know 
that it was not easy, and I thank him and his staff for taking the time 
to consider our concerns. I offer my strong support and commitment to 
continue working with the Chairman and the Subcommittee so that this 
critical agency receives the funding and guidance so that the IRS may 
provide the highest quality, timely and secure taxpayer experience.

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