Cbo Data Sharing Act

Floor Speech

I want to ask for a clarification of H.R. 7032, the Congressional Budget Office Data Sharing Act and its application to taxpayer privacy rules. As you are aware, section 6103 of the Tax Code establishes strict limitations regarding the disclosure of confidential taxpayer information, including the disclosure of taxpayer information between government agencies or between branches of government. The authority of the Congressional Budget Office to receive confidential taxpayer information is restricted under section 6103. The Internal Revenue Service has long held that information disclosure provisions outside of the Tax Code may only override section 6103 if such disclosure provision explicitly states so.

H.R. 7032 makes certain amendments to the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 to strengthen and clarify the CBO Director's authority to request and receive data from executive branch agencies, but does not explicitly reference section 6103 or make any amendments to the Tax Code. Accordingly, it is my understanding that H.R. 7032 is not intended to modify the application of section 6103 of the Tax Code in any way. Is that correct?

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