Federal Employee Tax Accountability Act of 2012

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 828) to amend title 5, United States Code, to provide that persons having seriously delinquent tax debts shall be ineligible for Federal employment, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.

I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, almost every Federal employee that I have run into, they're good, hardworking, patriotic people trying to do the right thing; but unfortunately we have a few that really aren't doing the right thing.

I want to highlight a problem that we see out there. There are those Federal employees that are delinquent on their Federal taxes. Now, this becomes egregious, I think, because of the nature of their employment-- they're working for the Federal Government, they're being paid by the Federal taxpayers, and yet they're not paying their own Federal taxes.

Unfortunately, over the course of time this situation has not gotten better. People are dealing with very difficult situations, they have adopted something or somehow in their life they've gotten upside down. The nature and the spirit of this bill, the bill that I am the chief sponsor on, is to find those people who are trying to do the right thing--they're trying to rectify it, they're trying to come up with a plan--we're not going after those people. But for the other group of people who are just totally ignoring the law

and they're not living up to their obligation, they're not paying their Federal taxes, there ought to be more of a consequence.

The number of delinquent employees has remained fairly consistent since the year 2004. Remarkably, there were 102,794 employees who were delinquent with their Federal taxes back in 2004. Fast forward to 2010, that number is still 98,291. In fact, nearly 700 people on Capitol Hill are delinquent on their Federal taxes. Unfortunately, the dollar amount of these delinquencies from 2004, which was $599.8 million, has grown to over $1 billion--in fact, it's $1.034 billion unpaid taxes from Federal employees.

So, employees who consciously ignore the channels and processes in place to fulfill their tax obligations must be held accountable. The Federal Employee Tax Accountability Act addresses noncompliance with our tax laws by prohibiting individuals with seriously delinquent tax debt from Federal civilian employment. This should be common sense, and I hope it's bipartisan.

Most taxpayers, including government employees, file accurate tax returns and pay the taxes they owe on time, regardless of their income. Federal employees and individuals applying for Federal employment should do the same--always.

In 2010, the most recent year for which the IRS data is available, more than 98,000 civilian Federal employees owed more than $1 billion in taxes. The average delinquency rate for Federal civilian employees was 3.33 percent, up from 2.29 percent in 2008.

The vast majority of Federal workers who owe taxes owe them from income that they earned. The intent of this bill is simple. If you're a Federal employee or an applicant for Federal employment, you should be making a good faith effort to pay your taxes or to dispute them, as taxpayers have the right to do.

Under this bill, H.R. 828, individuals having seriously delinquent tax debts are ineligible for Federal civilian employment in the executive and legislative branch. ``Serious tax delinquent'' is defined as an outstanding Federal debt for which the notice of lien has been filed publicly.

H.R. 828 exempts employees who are working to settle tax liabilities by excluding Federal tax debts that are being paid in accordance with an installment agreement, offer of compromise, or wage garnishment; for which a due process hearing or request for relief from joint and several liability is requested or pending; or for which relief has been granted. So, there are exceptions. We're not trying to cut somebody off at the knees if they're trying to do the right thing.

The bill requires individuals applying for Federal jobs to certify that they are not seriously delinquent in their taxes. Agencies will also conduct periodic reviews of public records for tax liens. And individuals with seriously delinquent tax debt may avail themselves of existing due process rights, including before the Merit Systems Protection Board. In addition, individuals will have 6 months to demonstrate that their tax debt is not ``seriously delinquent.''

The bill also provides a financial hardship exemption for employees. Federal employees are called to account for paying taxes by the code of ethics for the executive branch. The code of ethics dictates that Federal employees must ``satisfy in good faith their obligations as citizens, including all just financial obligations, especially those such as Federal, State or local taxes that are imposed by law.'' Thus, the necessity of this situation. Unfortunately, it's getting worse, it's not getting better.

We have an obligation, I think, to the American taxpayers and to the overwhelming majority, the 96-plus percent of Federal workers, who are doing the right thing. Thus, I urge the adoption of this bill.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

There is a need for this. I wish there wasn't a need for this. There are other more pressing things that we should be focused on. But this is $1 billion in uncollected taxes, taxes that are due by Federal workers.

Again, I don't want to disparage the reputation of all Federal employees, but this small group--in excess now of 3 percent of our Federal workers--is putting tarnishment on those other employees.

I want to point to a January 23, 2012, Federal Eye article--Ed O'Keefe is the author. Let me read a paragraph from his article. He said:

But on Capitol Hill, 684 employees, or almost 4 percent, of

the 18,000 congressional staffers owed taxes in 2010, a jump

of 46 workers from 2009. Four percent of House staffers owed

$8.5 million, and 3 percent of Senate employees owed $2.1

million, the IRS said.

We actually get a report from the IRS, and it has a breakdown of the number of employees by department who aren't paying their Federal taxes. The Department of Treasury, they have one of the lowest percentages. Less than 1 percent of their employees don't pay their taxes, but they still have 1,181 employees at the Department of Treasury who aren't paying it. There's an uncollected $9.3 million.

At the Federal Reserve, the Board of Governors, smaller in terms of their numbers, but you still had 91 employees at the Federal Reserve not paying their taxes--4.86 percent of their employees not paying over $1.2 million in taxes.

If you go on and look here, this one is my personal favorite. The U.S. Office of Government Ethics has the worst compliance rate of our Federal workers. If you put that in a movie, you wouldn't believe it. But nearly 6.5 percent of their employees don't pay their Federal taxes, the U.S. Office of Government Ethics.

Unfortunately, there is a need for this.

I would like to highlight, we did this in a very bipartisan way within committee. There was an amendment offered by Mr. Lynch of Massachusetts, who I have the greatest respect for. He offered an amendment. We accepted that. When we accepted that, he was quoted as saying, and I quote from Mr. Lynch:

With that refinement here, a friendly amendment, I

certainly would vote for the bill if the amendment were

included.

I hope we can do this in a bipartisan way. We have an obligation, a duty to do this.

I reserve the balance of my time, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, let me say, in conclusion here, look, if Federal workers aren't paying their Federal taxes, they should be fired. If they're

not paying their Federal taxes and they want employment here, they should not be employed as Federal workers.

We have a duty and an obligation. This is a billion dollar problem in search of a solution. This is the solution. We should do so in a bipartisan way.

And with that, I urge the adoption of this bill.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I regrettably missed the suspension votes on July 31, 2012. Please let the record reflect my position on each of these pieces of legislation.

(1) S. 679 (Roll no. 537)--Presidential Appointment Efficiency and Streamlining Act of 2011. I would like the record to reflect that I would have voted in favor of this legislation, which I support, had I been present to record my vote.

(2) H.R. 828 (Roll no. 538)--Federal Employee Tax Accountability Act of 2011, as amended. I would like the record to reflect that I would have voted against this legislation, which I oppose, had I been present to record my vote. I believe that holding individuals with seriously delinquent tax debts accountable is important--to address our fiscal deficit and to ensure all Americans are fulfilling their responsibilities as citizens of this country. However, this legislation unnecessarily and unfairly singles out federal employees. For this reason, I oppose this legislation.

(3) H.R. 3803 (Roll no. 539)--District of Columbia Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. I would like the record to reflect that I would have voted against this legislation, which I strongly oppose, had I been present to record my vote.

The District of Columbia Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act represents just one more step in the Republican's agenda to undermine women's access to reproductive health care. This measure cruelly contains no exemptions in the case of rape, incest, or a terminal fetal anomaly, requiring a woman to carry a non-viable fetus to term. Moreover, this bill is another instance of a congressional overreach into the District of Columbia's affairs. If supporters truly deemed this legislation acceptable for all Americans, they would have moved to enact it nationally, as opposed to imposing it solely on D.C.'s population.

I have long been a strong supporter of women's reproductive rights, and I have continued to work to ensure that women's rights and access to abortion care remain safe and legal. This Congress, we have seen the rights of women come under attack repeatedly in the House of Representatives. Though I firmly believe in encouraging healthy debate, the attacks we have seen are an affront to the rights and health of women around this country. I have, and will continue to, consistently oppose measures like this legislation, which undercut critical access to reproductive health care.

Mr. Speaker, the bill before us today makes any person who has a seriously delinquent tax debt ineligible for federal employment or to continue serving as a federal employee. I will vote for this bill because I strongly believe that all Americans, including federal employees, should meet their legal tax obligations. However, this bill is an unnecessary distraction from the urgent problems facing Congress because there is no evidence to show federal employees deserve to be targeted for tax non-compliance. In fact, the data shows just the opposite.

The compliance rate of federal employees is much higher than the general public according to the most recent statistics from the Internal Revenue Service. The IRS says more than 96 percent of federal workers paid their taxes in full, on time, and have no outstanding debt to the government. This high compliance rate is even more impressive considering the families of federal employees have been forced to endure repeated pay freezes and benefit reductions in recent years.

An amendment from my colleague Congressman Lynch of Massachusetts improved H.R. 828 by creating a process to ensure federal employees who are making a good faith effort to pay their tax debt or those suffering financial hardship are not unfairly targeted or dismissed. Still, the provisions of H.R. 828 will result in few new dollars going into the federal Treasury because federal employees are already the model for American taxpayers, not the problem. If House Republicans were genuinely concerned with improving tax compliance this body would be voting on legislation to close tax loopholes and tax shelters exploited by some of the nation's wealthiest individuals and corporations to avoid paying tens of billions of dollars every year.

The best course of action for this House would be to set this purely symbolic, politically-motivated legislation aside so we can focus on legislation that creates jobs and helps to grow the economy.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, as Chairman Issa stated during the Oversight Committee's consideration of this bill, H.R. 828, this is largely a symbolic gesture.

We all agree that everyone, including Federal workers, should pay their taxes. Members on both sides of the aisle emphasize the need to hold Federal employees accountable for tax obligations. However, the overwhelming majority of Federal workers take their income tax obligation seriously.

The tax compliance rate for Federal employees is much higher than for the American public. According to the most recent statistics from the Internal Revenue Service, more than 96 percent of Federal workers pay their taxes on time and do not owe money to the government.

In addition, there are already existing laws and regulations that address tax debts owed by Federal employees, and the IRS has a system in place for levying up to 15 percent of Federal wage payments made to delinquent taxpayers until the tax debt is satisfied.

The Joint Committee on Taxation has concluded that H.R. 828 would have ``negligible impact'' on revenue. In fact, implementation of the bill would have a small cost. So, I'm not certain that this bill will have any significant impact whatsoever.

I strongly believe that the House's efforts and energy would be better spent by focusing on measures to strengthen the Federal civil service and improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the Federal Government rather than by making symbolic gestures that reinforce a negative view of the Federal workforce.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no additional speakers. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on Tuesday, July 31, 2012 I unfortunately missed three votes on account of travel delays due to weather at Reagan National Airport. I realize the importance of the votes I missed and therefore would like to state for the record how I would have voted on the three bills that were before the House of Representatives on Tuesday.

First, I would have supported S. 679, the Presidential Appointment Efficiency and Streamlining Act. S. 679 would seek to reduce the burdens and improve the efficiency of the appointment process for executive branch officials.

I would have supported H.R. 828, the Federal Employee Tax Accountability Act. H.R. 828 would prohibit individuals who have ``seriously delinquent'' tax debts from being eligible for federal employment in the executive and legislative branch.

Lastly, I would have supported H.R. 3803, the DC Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. As a co-sponsor of H.R. 3803, I whole heartedly support this measure that would prohibit abortion within the District after 20 weeks fetal age, unless the mother's life is endangered.