Kevin Brady: “But our agencies, the independent agencies, the Government Accountability Office and Joint Tax, make the point attached…”

“But our agencies, the independent agencies, the Government Accountability Office and Joint Tax, make the point attached to this legislation that this program has worked, is working efficiently, and will save U.S. taxpayers more than $1 billion. You will hear today about abuses. But the fact of the matter is they can name not one in any independent agency, including the IRS, the Treasury. Examination of the program has showed 97 percent customer satisfaction, zero privacy violations, and zero Fair Debt Collection Act violations, zero, no matter what is talked about. Mr. Speaker, the truth of the matter is, the question before us today is not about privatization. This is about credibility. This majority has talked about closing the tax gap, what is owed and what is paid. Yet today we will widen that tax gap by over $1 billion. So the question is will we walk the walk, or just talk the talk about the tax gap. This partnership between the IRS and these private collection agencies is working for the American public. We ought to let it continue to work for the American public, because we can use that $1 billion for health care, for education, for helping our veterans, for a number of important priorities in this budget.”