TIGTA head J. Russell George has died

J. Russell George, the longtime leader of the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, died Monday after an unspecified prolonged illness.

Acting Inspector General Heather M. Hill announced George’s death Wednesday, saying he passed away earlier this week. She will continue to serve as acting inspector general. Hill joined the agency in 2011 from the Government Accountability Office and has served in various leadership positions at TIGTA.

George has been leading TIGTA since December 2004. His agency has produced a series of hard-hitting reports over the years on the Internal Revenue Service, including a report in 2013 on the tax-exempt unit that led to a shake-up at the agency.

Under his leadership as TIGTA’s Inspector General since 2004, George helmed a staff of more than 700 professionals that conducted or supported audits, investigations, inspections, and evaluations to oversee the IRS. During his tenure, TIGTA’s oversight efforts resulted in the recovery, protection and identification of over $325 billion in monetary benefits and affected more than 440 million taxpayer accounts. At the time of his passing, he was among the longest-serving inspectors general in the federal government. He served as a member of the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board, which was established to provide oversight and transparency of spending under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, and was later a member of the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee, tracing funds given out in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

A native of New York City, he returned to the area after receiving his law degree from Harvard University to serve as a prosecutor in the Queens County District Attorney’s Office. Following his work as a prosecutor, he was assistant general counsel in the White House Office of Management and Budget. He then joined the White House Staff as associate director for policy in the Office of National Service. There, he was responsible for implementing legislation that created the Corporation for National and Community Service. Several years later, he served as its inspector general after being appointed by President George W. Bush.

His long career of public service also included roles as staff director and chief counsel for a subcommittee of the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight. There, he directed a staff that held over 200 oversight hearings to improve government administration.