Danny Werfel resigns as IRS commissioner

IRS commissioner Danny Werfel said Friday he plans to resign next Monday, Jan. 20, coinciding with Inauguration Day.

President-elect Donald Trump announced plans last month to nominate former Rep. Billy Long, a Republican from Missouri, as the next IRS commissioner, even though Werfel’s term doesn’t end until November 2027. 

“While I had always intended to complete my full term as Commissioner, the President-elect has announced his plan to nominate a new IRS Commissioner,” Werfel said in an email Friday to all IRS employees. “I have been touched by those who have reached out to me to share how they were hopeful that I could remain in seat and continue the important work underway. But as civil servants, we have a job to do, and that job is to now ensure a new Commissioner is set up for success.”

Werfel has been serving as IRS commissioner since March 2023 after previously serving as acting commissioner in 2013, bringing much needed stability to the agency in the wake of a scandal that erupted over the delayed approval of conservative political groups for tax-exempt status. During his most recent tenure, he oversaw tax seasons that ran relatively smoothly thanks to increased funding from the Inflation Reduction Act as well as the launch of the free Direct File program for electronic filing.

“After significant introspection and consultation with others, I’ve determined the best way to support a successful transition is to depart the IRS on January 20, 2025,” Werfel wrote. “While leaving a job you love is never easy, I take comfort in knowing that the civil servant leaders and employees at the IRS are the exact right team to effectively steward this organization forward until a new IRS Commissioner is confirmed. I know this because of what I have seen you achieve over the past two years — remarkable work that will serve as a strong foundation for the future.”

Werfel said he has been holding discussions with members of Congress and the presidential transition team to ensure a smooth transition at the IRS. The start of tax season is approaching on Jan. 27.

“At the IRS, we can’t take any days off in protecting the non-partisan nature of our work,” he wrote. “And this of course includes during a presidential transition. In the past few weeks, I have had discussions with IRS employees, members of Congress, staff on the transition team and other stakeholders on how the IRS can best ensure a successful transition to a new administration. I start each of those conversations with the same key point: As a non-partisan entity, the IRS will work as tirelessly to support the incoming Treasury team’s agenda just as we have for the outgoing Treasury team.”

Werfel was asked during a press conference last week about how long he plans to remain at the IRS and insisted he has remained “laser focused” on his job and preparing for filing season.

“I spend every waking hour during the day and, quite frankly, at night, focused on one thing and one thing only, and that’s getting ready for this filing season,” said Werfel. “That has consumed all of my energy, and that is my sole focus.”

Long has not yet been officially nominated by Trump, and in the meantime, deputy commissioner Douglas O’Donnell will be in charge of the agency.

“Deputy Commissioner Douglas O’Donnell, with his extensive experience and proven leadership, will step in as Acting Commissioner, to ensure a smooth transition and continuity of the agency’s critical work until a new Commissioner is confirmed,” said Werfel on Friday. “Over the next few days, we will provide more specifics on leadership changes. I also want to thank the Treasury Secretary, the Deputy Secretary, and their entire leadership team who have been active champions for all the positive change underway.”

O’Donnell was previously acting commissioner from November 2022 to March 2023 during the transition between former IRS commissioner Chuck Rettig and Werfel.

The departure was not entirely unexpected, as government officials often depart when there’s a change of administration. Securities and Exchange Commission chairman Gary Gensler has announced his plans to step down on Jan. 20, and other SEC officials are also departing, including SEC chief accountant Paul Munter.

Werfel has been leveraging the funding from the Inflation Reduction Act to improve taxpayer service, technology and enforcement at the IRS, including new digital tools such as the Tax Professional Online Account.

“We are making major progress toward the same modern experience that taxpayers get with their bank or financial institution,” he wrote. “We launched more digital tools in the last two years than the previous 20, making it easier for taxpayers to access services and manage their accounts. This includes more than two dozen new features and enhancements to Individual and Tax Professional Online Account and the launch of Business Tax Account.”

The IRS has also been ramping up enforcement, doing more audits of large partnerships and corporations and high-income taxpayers, as well as cracking down on abuse of the Employee Retention Credit, imposing a temporary moratorium on processing new ERC claims. The IRS has since lifted the moratorium, but a recent report from National Taxpayer Advocate Erin Collins has criticized the slow processing of the claims. while lauding other improvements in taxpayer service at the IRS. Long has been a booster for the ERC since leaving office and was recently questioned about it by Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, in a letter last week.

The IRS is facing the prospect of over $20 billion in budget cuts as a result of language that was repeated in a continuing resolution to avoid a government shutdown, as well as threats by Republican lawmakers to eliminate the Direct File program.

Werfel highlighted some of his accomplishments in his email to IRS employees. “We launched new initiatives to ensure tax enforcement is fair by strengthening complex and high-end enforcement,” he wrote. “In just one example, more than $1.4 billion has been recovered from a small number of high-income people who have not paid overdue tax debt or filed tax returns for many years. Lastly, we have made major progress updating foundational technology to process transactions more quickly, transparently and securely. We have turned a corner on modernizing our core processing system, the Individual Master File, and we are now running the new system in parallel with our legacy system, a longstanding goal of the agency. Brick by brick — and online tool by online tool — we are making improvements that will empower IRS to more quickly implement any tax code changes like those that may be enacted in 2025, while reducing the costs of maintaining IRS systems.”