IRS Furloughs Half Its Staff, Freezes Tax Services

As the government shutdown stretches, the Internal Revenue Service has furloughed nearly half of its workforce, following the expiration of a contingency plan that relied on leftover Biden administration funding to pay workers, Forbes Daily reported.

The furloughs stem from Trump’s decision to halt negotiations with Democrats over a stopgap funding bill.

Most taxpayer services will likely face delays, including processing of refunds and amended returns, though tax filings and payments remain due.

The absence of tax collectors also complicates an escalating tax revolt led by Maine Gov. Janet Mills, who has warned President Donald Trump that her state will delete federal tax withholdings from all paychecks if the White House freezes federal funds owed to Maine.

The broader revolt now looms as a major concern among federal employees, who were told by Trump that they may not receive back pay once the government reopens.

Critics have denounced the move as another case of political “grifting,” with federal workers expected to sue to recover their wages.

The furloughs stem from Trump’s decision to halt negotiations with Democrats over a stopgap funding bill—a move that has left hundreds of thousands of government employees without pay and the nation’s tax collection agency largely paralyzed.