The IRS’s acting commissioner, Melanie Krause, abruptly resigned after being sidelined in a controversial agreement allowing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to access taxpayer data for deportation efforts.
The acting commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Melanie Krause, resigned abruptly after senior Treasury officials bypassed her in a new agreement permitting Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to use taxpayer data for immigration enforcement.
Krause, who had served as acting commissioner since February 28, reportedly learned of the arrangement through Fox News rather than internal channels, according to The Washington Post. The deal, signed by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, allows ICE to verify the identities and addresses of individuals suspected of being in the U.S. illegally—a move IRS lawyers warned could violate privacy laws.
“She no longer feels like she’s in a position where she can impact the decision-making that’s happening,” a source familiar with Krause’s decision told The Post. “And [she believes] that some of the decisions that are being made now are things the IRS can never recover from.”
Krause’s departure adds to a wave of exits at the IRS, including her predecessor, Doug O’Donnell, who retired amid tensions with Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Former commissioner Danny Werfel, a Biden appointee, resigned when President Trump took office in January.
