Less than two months after having sworn as commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Billy Long is already out of office. The news, reported first by The New York Times, has been confirmed by the White House.
Rotating doors
President Donald Trump announced the Long nomination in December 2024, although Danny Werfel was fulfilling a mandate as IRS commissioner that would normally last until the end of 2027. Long swore the position on June 16, 2025.
Werfel subsequently resigned, with effect on January 20, 2025. As Long had not yet been confirmed at that time, Werfel was replaced by Doug O’Donnell, who served as an interim commissioner after his departure. O’Donnell left the position on February 28, 2025 and was replaced by the then IRS Director of Operations, Melanie Krause. Krause announced his departure in April 2025, after an IRS agreement to share tax data with ICE (immigration and customs control). Gary Shaley held the position of interim commissioner for only two days before being replaced by Michael Faulkender on April 18, 2025, who was in that position until Long assumed.
Counting the interim commissioners, Long was the sixth person to direct the IRS since the beginning of the year. It will be replaced by Scott Besent, who will serve as an interim commissioner while continuing as Treasury Secretary.
Not only in the dome they are seeing exits. The IRS workforce went from 103,000 employees in January 2025 to approximately 77,000 in May 2025 (a 25%reduction). These figures, which had already been reported above, were confirmed by the Office of the Treasury Inspector for the Treasury Administration (Tigta).
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The departures of leaders and staff in general are given just when the IRS prepares for next year’s tax season. In spite of new deductions for tips and extra income that come into force retroactively for all 2025, the IRS has announced that there will be no changes in the retention tables or in certain forms such as the W-2, the 1099, the 941 and other payroll forms by 2025. According to the IRS, these decisions are “destined to avoid interruptions during the season of statements and to give enough time to the agency and tax professionals to implement changes effectively. “
About Billy Long
Long was an unusual (and controversial) choice for the position. It does not have formal tax training, law or accounting, does not have a university degree and was never part of a Legislative Committee on Taxes. He left the University of Misuri before returning to study at the Missuri auction school, where he obtained the professional auctioneer certification. According to Auctintaer Magazine, they told him that this school was “the Harvard of auction schools.” After changing career, Long claims to have made about 200 auctions per year for 20 years. Currently, it is part of the Fame Hall of the National Auctioneers Association.
Before arriving in Washington, he was also a real estate corridor and radio announcer.
Long was a representative for the 7th Missouri district from 2011 to 2023. In 2022 he was running for the US Senate, but lost in the Republican primaries.
During his passage through the Chamber, Long was part of the Committees of Energy and Commerce, Transportation and Infrastructure, National Security, and the Republican Steering Committee. He never participated in fiscal committees. However, he received the “Fighter Award against Taxes” of the National Tax Limitation Committee (an organization that apparently does not exist – his website now redirects a betting page in Thailand).
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In 2011, he presented the Tax Code termination law, which sought to eliminate the fiscal code and replace it with a single tax (Flat Tax), although the project did not specify amounts and did not eliminate payroll taxes. In 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2017, it co -crocked laws to repeal income tax, eliminate IRS and establish a national tax on consumption administered by the States. In 2023 he repeated that pattern, proposing a 30% tax on goods and services to replace most federal taxes.
It also co -crocked numerous initiatives to eliminate inheritance tax.
Despite these positions, he said before the Senate Finance Committee in May 2025: “My unique life experience has shaped my understanding about how the government works and the importance of equity and integrity. I intend to use those experiences to transform the IRS.”
Controversial confirmation
Long was confirmed by the Senate with a vote of 53 to 44, with all the Republicans in favor and all the Democrats against. During their confirmation hearing, the Democrats expressed concern about their links with companies that promoted controversial tax credits, as non -existent one for indigenous tribes and the credit for employee withholding (ERC), widely abused. The tax law signed by Trump on July 4 annulled any ERC pending request submitted after January 31, 2024 and increased sanctions for the promoters of that credit.
Senator Ron Wyden. The Democrats also feared that Long allowed political interference from the White House in the Tax Agency, especially after Trump threatened to revoke the tax exemption from Harvard University. Long had shared critical publications against Harvard, Columbia and other tax institutions on social networks.
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When questioned by Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Long initially suggested that he would seek legal advice to determine if the president could legally order audits to IRS. He replied: “I will follow the law, and if that is what the law says, then.” Warren confirmed that the law prohibits it, reading him out loud section 7217 of the statute, which had already sent him in advance.
Early controversy
Last month, Long generated controversy by suggesting that the 2026 tax season would open late. At the 2025 Tax Summit of the National Association of Registered Agents (NAEA), he said that the season of statements would begin near the Day of the Presidents (February 16), noting that he wanted to open it before, but that the agency needed more time.
The IRS hastened to correct his statements, issuing a statement to the NAEA: “Commissioner Billy Long is in his second week of a tour of the IRS facilities, with visits last week in Georgia and this week in Utah. Billy cares two groups: his employees-social employees and taxpayers. He is collecting information on how to improve the experience of taxpayers. We wait for another success season. We will announce its beginning in the normal course. “
Next steps
Long is expected to be nominated for a diplomatic position. Neither the IRS nor the treasure responded immediately to requests for comments.
Reactions
Wyden issued a statement on Long’s departure: “From the moment Trump announced Billy Long as his choice for the IRS, it was obvious that this would end badly, but all Republican senators voted in favor of his nomination anyway. He didn’t even last two months in office. Let’s not forget that there was not even a vacancy when Trump nominated him. Danny Werfel With support of both games, he had remaining years in his mandate. ”
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Wyden added: “Billy Long left Congress and got fully into the tax fraud industry, his only real experience in taxes before being nominated. My researchers have obtained alarming information about their behavior in the IRS, and we will continue investigating, even if Trump hides it in an embassy abroad.”
This note was originally posted in Forbes USA.
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