IRS Commissioner Billy Long to depart, with Bessent now acting head

President Donald Trump removed former congressman Billy Long as Internal Revenue Service commissioner after less than two months on the job, throwing the leadership of the tax agency once again into turmoil.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will serve as acting commissioner until a permanent replacement is named, a White House official said Friday, describing the changes on the condition of anonymity.

Long said that Trump was appointing him ambassador to Iceland. 

“Exciting times ahead!” he posted on X.

Long’s departure marks the latest turnover atop the IRS, which has had six different people lead the agency this year alone. In April, Bessent openly sparred with Elon Musk after the billionaire Trump ally installed Gary Shapley to lead the agency without Bessent’s knowledge. 

The IRS has been at the center of Trump’s push to strip universities and nonprofit groups he sees as political enemies of their tax-exempt status, and is responsible for implementing the sweeping tax bill passed by Republican lawmakers earlier this summer. The agency is simultaneously grappling with significant layoffs and attempts to upgrade its technology.

The New York Times earlier reported the departure.