Part ofIRS →

FEDERALhearing transcript

High Impact

Congressional Hearing: Can the IRS Protect Taxpayer Data?

Original title: CAN THE IRS PROTECT TAXPAYERS' PERSONAL INFORMATION?

January 1, 2017

IRS data security taxpayer privacy cybersecurity government oversight

Track this bill to get notified when it advances a stage. One tap to stop, anytime.

The Frame

What this does

The hearing examines the security of personal financial data held by the IRS, directly impacting the privacy and identity protection of every American taxpayer.

Who is mentioned in the record

Potentially affected actors named in the source documents. Mention is not a position.

Taxpayers

Taxpayers are the subjects of the data held by the IRS and are directly affected by the security of that information.

Internal Revenue Service

The agency is responsible for maintaining the security of taxpayer data and is the subject of the oversight hearing.

What changed

Last recorded activity January 1, 2017.

What's next

Next step not available in the current record.

Summary

This document is a transcript of a 2016 House Subcommittee hearing investigating the Internal Revenue Service's ability to secure sensitive taxpayer information. Lawmakers questioned IRS leadership and government auditors regarding data breaches and the agency's cybersecurity protocols.

Key Facts

The hearing took place on April 14, 2016, in the Rayburn House Office Building.
The primary subject was the security of taxpayer personal information held by the IRS.
The hearing included testimony from the IRS Commissioner, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, and a Director from the Government Accountability Office.
Chairwoman Barbara Comstock stated she personally received notification that her tax information had been compromised.
The hearing was held during the tax filing season, highlighting the urgency of data protection concerns.

Frequently Asked Questions

What was the purpose of this hearing?

To evaluate the effectiveness of the IRS in protecting the personal and financial information of taxpayers from data breaches.

Who testified at this hearing?

The IRS Commissioner, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, and a Director from the Government Accountability Office.

Why It Matters

The hearing examines the security of personal financial data held by the IRS, directly impacting the privacy and identity protection of every American taxpayer.

News Coverage

No news coverage found yet. Articles are indexed twice daily.

Discoveries

Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.

temporal pattern90% confidence

Tax Season Timing

The hearing was intentionally scheduled during the tax filing season to emphasize the immediate relevance of data security to the public.

Internal Revenue Service

Connected Entities

personJ. Russell George“Inspector General, Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration”Map →

organizationSubcommittee on Research and Technology“House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology”Map →

personJohn Koskinen“Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service”Map →

personGregory Wilshusen“Director, Information Security Issues, U.S. Government Accountability Office”Map →

personBarbara Comstock“Chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Research and Technology”Map →

Sources

Open source document

www.govinfo.gov

Analysis Score

0–100

Significance75
How much this matters to a regular citizen
Controversy60
Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
Entertainment30
Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
Buzz20
Current news / social attention level

Publisher tools