Sen. Mike Crapo, Republican of Idaho, unveils Team Trump’s bold economic agenda in Kudlow.
That of President-elect Trump The nominee for Treasury secretary told senators during his confirmation hearing Thursday that he would seek to crack down on tax evaders, whether they are wealthy or not.
Scott Bessentthe Key Square Group CEO whom Trump nominated to serve as Treasury secretary testified before the Senate Finance Committee and was pressed on whether he would work to step up audits of wealthy taxpayers. If confirmed, Bessent would lead the Treasury Department, of which the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is a subagency.
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, noted that although technological developments such as artificial intelligence (AI) If the agency can help with tax enforcement, the agency will need resources that he said have been lacking in the past and therefore hampered previous efforts to step up audits of wealthy taxpayers.
“What you’ve seen is because we don’t have the resources to go after the rich tax cheats, the people who use the Earned Income Tax Credit or something like that – they’re the ones who undergo the audits and so on,” Wyden said. “And I want to see, in this position, someone committed to making sure that we will have the resources to go after wealthy tax evaders who have this type of unique system.”
Scott Bessent testifies during his Senate Finance Committee confirmation hearing on Thursday, January 16, 2025. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via / Getty Images)
“And I recognize your point that it will certainly be a challenge in the years to come when it comes to AI and other technologies, but we will always need resources,” Wyden added.
“If confirmed, I will come back to you with a plan to increase collections,” Bessent responded.
This prompted Wyden to follow up by asking: “On The rich tax evaders?”
“You seem to believe that the rich cheat more, but I think that applies across the income spectrum,” Bessent said.
“You say the rich have this special cache, but if there’s a big lode there, then to figure out how to decipher it – whether through AI or other means – I’ll commit to coming back towards you,” Bessent said.
TREASURY SECRETARY CANDIDATE SCOTT BESSENT’S “3-3-3” PLAN: WHAT TO KNOW
Scott Bessent, founder and CEO of Key Square Group LP, during an interview in Washington, DC, June 7, 2024. (Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)
Wyden noted that Trump tax commissioner from his first term, he testified that the agency needed additional multi-year funding because it was “underequipped when it came to auditing high net worth individuals and large corporations.”
“The view I’ve outlined today is not just one I’m offering, but one that a former Trump appointee has specifically said is the agency being overwhelmed in terms of resources. You said That you would continue the discussion, that’s an important point,” Wyden told Bessent.
