The Internal Revenue Service has found itself $20 billion short in its efforts to increase enforcement of the federal tax code, The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.

In April of 2023, the IRS announced it was aiming to hire 20,000 new employees over the next two years and employ new technologies as part of an $80 billion investment from the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. The funds were intended to improve tax-enforcement and customer service. When the GOP took over the House, they began pulling back on IRS funding, striking deals with Democrat President Joe Biden which left roughly $24 billion remaining for tax enforcement. The agency claims it loses close to $500 billion a year in unpaid taxes.

Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said due to language in the current law governing federal spending, close to $20 billion of the agency’s $22.4 billion remaining in enforcement funding is essentially frozen. Adeyemo told the outlet it was critical for Congress to address the issue promptly in its upcoming spending bill to give the IRS access to the frozen funds.

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