IRS workers have protested a spending cuts that were enacted by the agency.
The workers gathered in Manhattan this week, protesting the cuts that were brought about by the sequester that went into effect in March. The sequestration cuts seek to eliminate $600 million from the IRS’s budget in 2013, reported CNN Money.
The cuts mean around 100,000 employees will have to be furloughed without pay for as long as seven days.
The National Treasury Employees Union said the IRS brings in 93 percent of the government’s funds, meaning that shutting down the agency’s operations will slow down revenue and increase the U.S. debt.
“I live paycheck-to-paycheck, so if something comes up I really hope I have [the money],” Cheryl Lassiter, an IRS auditor, told CNN in New York City. “I was going down to see [my mother] for Memorial Day, but I did a budget analysis and decided not to go because I better save my money.”
Citing John Kelshaw, a tax appeals officer with the IRS, CNN said that workers will lose between $160 and $400 per day due to the furlough.
In April, IRS Acting Commissioner Steven Miller told the House of Representatives that the budget cuts will hurt federal tax revenues over the long term, reported Reuters. However, he did not give an exact estimate.
Thinkprogress.org also said that “one estimate calculated that furloughing just 1,800 enforcement positions could mean losing $4.5 billion in revenue.”
“Every dollar invested in its enforcement, modernization, and management system reduces the deficit by $200, and every dollar it spends on audits, liens, and seizing property from tax evasion nets $10,” the website pointed out.
