President Trump\u2019s return to office has been an unforgiving crucible for the hidebound Internal Revenue Service. He and his aides have decimated its ranks, fired and replaced its leaders and made repeated attempts to enlist the agency in his quest for political retribution.<\/p>\n
Now, as part of an arrangement drawn up this week by Todd Blanche, the acting attorney general, the I.R.S. faces its most profound legal and ethical test yet: a demand to drop any audits<\/a> of Mr. Trump, his family members or their \u201caffiliates.\u201d<\/p>\n Tax lawyers and former I.R.S. officials said such expansive protection would cut to the core of the agency\u2019s mission to collect taxes in a disinterested, nonpartisan way \u2014 and could potentially run afoul of the laws governing how it does so.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s just completely contrary to the notion that you\u2019re supposed to comply with the law and the I.R.S. is there to make sure you do that,\u201d said George Yin, a tax law professor and former chief of staff at congressional Joint Committee on Taxation. \u201cThe idea that you can get a free pass from the I.R.S. or anyone can get a free pass from the I.R.S. is just completely ridiculous.\u201d<\/p>\n Immunity from I.R.S. scrutiny for Mr. Trump and his family was part of a broad agreement made by the Justice Department to resolve a lawsuit he filed against the I.R.S. over the leak of his tax returns. Beyond the audit provision, the Justice Department committed to creating a $1.8 billion fund<\/a> to pay victims of \u201cweaponization,\u201d a proposal that has been rebuked by both Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill.<\/p>\n While the Justice Department has said Mr. Trump himself will not be paid out of that fund, an end to any and all audits based on tax returns previously filed could be quite lucrative for the Trumps. The New York Times reported in 2024<\/a> that an adverse ruling in an I.R.S. audit could cost Mr. Trump more than $100 million, though it is unclear if that examination is still underway.<\/p>\n The nine-page outline creating the $1.776 billion \u201canti-weaponization\u201d fund was agreed to and signed on Monday by Frank Bisignano, who leads the I.R.S. as its chief executive officer. The one-page addendum calling for the I.R.S. to drop any audits of Mr. Trump and his family members was released the following day and signed by only Mr. Blanche.<\/p>\n That has raised the question of how, and if, the leader of the Justice Department can control decisions made at the I.R.S., which falls under the Treasury Department.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a genuine question as to whether the attorney general can do this,\u201d said Daniel Hemel, a tax law professor at New York University. \u201cI can\u2019t think of precedent where the attorney general signs a piece of paper that ends audits for a large number of people.\u201d<\/p>\n Representatives for the I.R.S. and Treasury Department did not respond to questions about whether they would carry out Mr. Blanche\u2019s order.<\/p>\n Updated\u00a0<\/p>\n May 21, 2026, 6:40 p.m. ET<\/p>\n