IRS Prods Lawmakers to Pass Tax Extenders

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore., urged members of Congress Tuesday to act swiftly in passing tax extenders that expired in 2013 in order to prevent disruptions in the 2015 tax filing season.

Wyden issued the statement on extenders after receiving a letter from IRS Commissioner John Koskinen regarding the negative impact of continuing congressional inaction on extenders.

“It has been over six months since the Finance Committee passed the EXPIRE Act with strong bipartisan support,” Wyden said in the statement. “As the 2015 filing season begins to loom large, it is more urgent than ever that Congress moves in a decisive and bipartisan way to renew expired tax provisions that will give taxpayers the certainty they need to plan their finances.”

According to the IRS, Wyden said, “the longer Congress delays action the greater risk that the tax filing season and millions of taxpayer refunds will be delayed, among other serious disruptions.”

Congress, Wyden said, “needs to act swiftly on these important tax provisions so it can get to work on a comprehensive overhaul of the tax code and lift the fog of uncertainty from taxpayers.”