The news surrounding Donald Trump‘s tax issues has been widely discussed. This time, however, the discussion has shifted to whether Democrats broke the law by sharing the information. This has created a precedent that could have far–reaching implications.
It is essential to consider the legal and ethical aspects of such a situation and determine what is appropriate for the future. It is up to the public to decide whether this was an appropriate move or not. Regardless of the outcome, this news story is sure to have an impact on the way data is shared and handled in the future.
The Wall Street Journal reported on IRS data obtained by the House Ways and Means Committee, which demonstrates that Trump utilized past tax losses to avoid paying taxes for numerous years:
“The committee released reports and some documents that revealed details about Mr. Trump’s tax returns and audits on Tuesday, showing that he and his wife, Melania Trump, reported negative adjusted gross income in four of the six years from 2015 through 2020. The Trumps paid some form of federal taxes every year, but reported income-tax liability of $750 or less in three of the six years. A full set of tax documents is expected to become public in subsequent days.
The Internal Revenue Service hasn’t completed the Trumps’ audits for any of those years, and Democrats contended that the agency was too slow and timid in how it handled the complex, sensitive tax returns of Mr. Trump, particularly during his presidency.
The committee used a provision of the tax code that lets lawmakers on the tax-writing panel review otherwise confidential documents and make them public in a report.
“I voted to reinforce this critical principle: No person is above the law, not even a president of the United States,” said Rep. Brendan Boyle (D., Pa.), a committee member.”
Now to the question; did Democrats have a legal right to share that information? Not according to law 26 USC 6103:
This statute does allow the chairs of several different congressional committees to access any taxpayer returns, but only while keeping them confidential. Any discussion of that data without the consent of the taxpayer is supposed to be restricted to in camera sessions:
“(f)Disclosure to Committees of Congress :
(1)Committee on Ways and Means, Committee on Finance, and Joint Committee on Taxation
Upon written request from the chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives, the chairman of the Committee on Finance of the Senate, or the chairman of the Joint Committee on Taxation, the Secretary shall furnish such committee with any return or return information specified in such request, except that any return or return information which can be associated with, or otherwise identify, directly or indirectly, a particular taxpayer shall be furnished to such committee only when sitting in closed executive session unless such taxpayer otherwise consents in writing to such disclosure. “
I guess the question now is; did Trump consent? I’m willing to bet not but we’ll see what Trump’s lawyers do about this.
