Cortez Masto, Daines Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Protect Sensitive Taxpayer Information

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) and Steve Daines (R-Mont.) introduced bipartisan legislation to protect the privacy of American taxpayers’ information. The bill would amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to increase criminal and civil penalties for unauthorized disclosure of taxpayer information. “When Americans pay their taxes, they are entrusting the government with extremely sensitive information – everything from Social Security numbers to banking details,” said Senator Cortez Masto. “As the IRS relies more heavily on government contractors, we need to do more to ensure they don’t mishandle taxpayer information. This bipartisan legislation will hold bad actors who put everyday Americans’ data in harm’s way accountable.” “One of the IRS’s most important responsibilities is protecting the confidentiality of taxpayer information. The last thing hardworking Americans should have to worry about is their tax information being breached or leaked. I’m proud to work with Senator Cortez Masto on this bill to protect taxpayer privacy rights and crack down on criminals who try to take advantage of the system,” said Senator Daines. This bipartisan legislation would establish new provisions to raise the existing criminal penalty for unauthorized disclosure of returns from a maximum fine of $5,000 an up to five years imprisonment to a maximum fine of $250,000 and up to seven years imprisonment. It would also establish a new felony offense for Internal Revenue Service (IRS) contractors who willfully fail to enforce the safeguards established in the tax code. Senator Cortez Masto has consistently fought to protect Nevadans’ privacy rights. She has led bipartisan legislation to protect Americans’ personal information from the Chinese Communist Party and other foreign adversaries. Cortez Masto has also fought to prevent both Elon Musk’s DOGE and the Department of Homeland Security from accessing sensitive IRS information. ###