Top IRS lawyer pushed aside as DOGE seeks tax records, staffing cuts
The acting chief counsel of the Internal Revenue Service has been removed from his position
as billionaire Elon Musk’s U.S. DOGE Service seeks access to sensitive taxpayer records,
according to five people familiar with the matter.
#William #Paul, a career official named to the position in January,
will be replaced by #Andrew #De #Mello,
who was nominated to be the Education Department’s inspector general during Trump’s first term, three of the people said.
The internal reshuffling comes as career staff clash with DOGE officials
over attempts to access taxpayer information widely viewed as some of the most closely guarded records in the federal government.
The Trump Department of Homeland Security has pushed IRS officials for the addresses of about 700,000 undocumented immigrants
— a request viewed by career staff as a violating the law.
DOGE has also pressed for tax-agency systems, property and datasets.
Separately, the Trump administration is also moving forward with cuts to tens of thousands of jobs at the tax agency.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/03/13/musk-doge-irs-trump/