In Appropriations Committee, Ciscomani Has Voted To Protect Tax Cheats, Slash Funding from Key Arizona Priorities

TUCSON — Congressman Juan Ciscomani has used his seat on the powerful House Appropriations Committee to vote recently for a handful of funding bills that make drastic cuts to measures that support Arizona families and lower costs—including the Financial Services and General Government (FSGG) bill that would claw back funding from the IRS intended to go after wealthy tax cheats. 

The Inflation Reduction Act provided essential funding to the IRS to force rich individuals who have avoided paying their tax bills. Thanks to this increased funding, the IRS recently announced that the agency had collected $1 billion in back taxes from “...1,600 taxpayers with more than $1 million of income who owed more than $250,000 in tax debt.”

The FSGG bill that Ciscomani voted for would also weaken consumer protections against predatory corporate practices and block the IRS's popular Direct File program piloted in Arizona this year that lets taxpayers easily file their annual taxes at no cost. 

“Congressman Ciscomani is hurting his constituents when he votes to cut funding that has allowed the IRS to collect more than $1 billion from wealthy tax cheats while voting to cut support for seniors on fixed incomes and working families struggling with housing costs,” said Andrea Moreno, Executive Director of Honest Arizona. “When these funding bills come up for votes in the full House, Congressman Ciscomani must prioritize the well-being of his constituents over harmful budget cuts and tax breaks for the wealthy.”

In House Appropriations Committee markups last week, Ciscomani also voted for:

  • House Republicans’ Energy and Water appropriations bill, which would increase energy costs for Arizonans by cutting $1.5 billion from Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Programs

  • House Republicans’ Interior-Environment appropriations bill, which would:

    • cut $678 million from Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds, worsening communities’ access to safe drinking water, 

    • grant tax breaks to big oil and gas corporations 

  • House Republicans’ Agriculture, Rural Development, and FDA appropriations bill, which would underfunds critical nutrition assistance through WIC and SNAP that helps mothers afford food for their children and helps low-income families better afford groceries and other essentials

  • House Republicans’ Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill, which would: 

    • make massive cuts to K-12 education

    • block access to affordable college education

    • make it harder for seniors to access Social Security and Medicare benefits

  • House Republicans’ Transportation-Housing and Urban Development appropriations bill, which would cut funding for public housing and affordable housing initiatives and could worsen Arizona's housing shortage

House Republicans have said that they’ll hold votes on these FY2025 appropriations bills in the coming weeks before August recess. 

###

Advancing AZ