Title: IRS to Furlough Nearly Half of Workforce Amid Shutdown

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will furlough nearly half of its workforce starting Wednesday due to the ongoing government shutdown. This decision follows an updated contingency plan posted on the agency's website. Most IRS operations are currently suspended, as stated in a letter sent to employees.

The shutdown has now entered its second week after President Donald Trump and Congress failed to reach an agreement on funding federal operations. The IRS had initially planned to remain operational for the first five business days using funds from the Inflation Reduction Act. However, the situation has changed significantly.

As a result of the furloughs, only 39,870 employees, or approximately 53.6% of the workforce, will continue to work during the shutdown. It remains unclear which specific employees will be designated to stay on the job.

Doreen Greenwald, president of the National Treasury Employees Union, expressed concern about the impact on taxpayers. She stated, "Taxpayers around the country will now have a much harder time getting the assistance they need, just as they get ready to file their extension returns due next week. Every day these employees are locked out of work is another day of frustration for taxpayers and a growing backlog of work that sits and waits for the shutdown to end."

Greenwald urged both the Trump administration and Congress to come to an agreement to reopen the government and restore essential services.

According to the notice sent to employees, both furloughed workers and those who remain on duty will receive back pay once the shutdown concludes. This is significant, especially since the administration had previously indicated that there was no guarantee of back pay for federal workers affected by the shutdown.

Last week, Trump mentioned that around 750,000 federal workers across various agencies were expected to be furloughed, with some potentially facing termination. Representatives from the IRS, the Treasury, and the White House have not commented on the furlough plans.

Earlier this year, the IRS initiated mass layoffs, led by the Department of Government Efficiency, which affected tens of thousands of employees. The agency's workforce, which was about 100,000 at the end of 2024, has now decreased to around 75,000.