Huizenga wants to ban IRS from obtaining certain personal information

Arpan Lobo, The Holland Sentinel
·2 min read
U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Zeeland, speaks with a member of the media before the start of the "Back the Blue" event Saturday, Aug. 1, 2020, at Centennial Park in Holland, Mich.
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GRAND RAPIDS — Republicans in Congress want to prevent the IRS from collecting biometric information, or a person’s physical traits that can be used to identify them.

U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Zeeland, and Sen. Rick Scott, R-Iowa, introduced concurrent legislation Tuesday containing the Ban IRS Biometrics Act. The bill would ban the agency from collecting biometric information, including facial images, fingerprints and iris scans, among other items.

The IRS currently collects personal agency like an individual’s name, email, address and social security number, according to its website, which makes no mention of collecting the biometric data of taxpayers.

The agency announced Feb. 7 it would abandon plans to use facial recognition technology for online log-ins after security concerns were raised. The IRS had initially sought to use facial recognition to prevent scammers from fraudulently logging into accounts and claiming the tax returns of others.

In response to the IRS' previous plans to use facial recognition, Huizenga introduced the FACE Act, which would ban the IRS from using the technology. The Ban IRS Biometrics Act goes a step further, covering other biometrics.

“The IRS demonstrated a clear desire to collect the biometric information of Americans when they were in the final stages of implementing their facial recognition requirement,” Huizenga said in a statement.

Huizenga also referenced a “history of targeting conservatives and leaking the private information of taxpayers.”

In 2015, hackers gained access to the personal information of more than 100,000 people who filed tax returns, using the information to file fraudulent tax returns of their own.

In 2017, the IRS apologized to conservative groups for mistreating them as they sought tax-exempt status.

A message seeking comment from the IRS on if biometric data is currently being compiled by the agency was not returned by the time of writing.

The Ban IRS Biometrics Act has been referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means. A hearing has not been set as of writing.

— Contact Arpan Lobo at alobo@hollandsentinel.com. Follow him on Twitter @arpanlobo.

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This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Huizenga bill would ban IRS from obtaining biometrics from taxpayers