Biography of IRS Commissioner Charles P. Rettig, April 21, 2022

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A biography of Charles P. Rettig, the 49th Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service, dated April 21, 2022. It states that the IRS collects more than $3.5 trillion in tax revenue each year and has about 80,000 employees and a budget of more than $11 billion. It states that in FY2020 the IRS processed more than 163 million individual tax returns and that, within two weeks following enactment of the CARES Act, it began processing 161 million Economic Impact Payments totaling approximately $271 billion. It also states that the IRS processed an additional 147 million Economic Impact Payments totaling more than $142 billion after the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021, and it summarizes Rettig's earlier law practice and professional roles.

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                                     BIOGRAPHY OF
                                  CHARLES P. RETTIG
                                    COMMISSIONER
                             INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE


Charles P. Rettig is the 49th Commissioner of the IRS. As Commissioner, Mr. Rettig
presides over the nation’s tax system, which collects more than $3.5 trillion in tax
revenue each year representing about 96% of the total gross receipts of the United
States. In this regard, the continued success of our country depends upon a successful
IRS since this revenue funds most government operations and public services. Mr.
Rettig manages an agency of about 80,000 employees and a budget of more than $11
billion.
In leading the IRS, Mr. Rettig has worked to focus attention on the important work of the
agency’s employees. “The IRS employees are the absolute strength of the agency,” he
notes. “We are proud to be reflective of the diverse communities we serve. Our
employees are dedicated and they care a lot, for both taxpayers and the nation.” Since
joining the IRS, Mr. Rettig has also been heavily focused on improving service to the
nation’s taxpayers, balancing appropriate enforcement of the nation’s tax laws while
respecting taxpayer rights, with a particular focus on traditionally underserved
communities. Subject to budgetary appropriations, the IRS maintains a strong, visible,
robust tax enforcement presence in support of those who voluntarily comply with their
filing and reporting requirements. Mr. Rettig has been leading efforts to enhance
taxpayer experiences operating “thru the eyes of the taxpayer.” These efforts include
implementation of the multi-year IRS Integrated Modernization Plan and the Taxpayer
First Act.
During the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, the IRS significantly scaled back operations
closing over 90% of its facilities to protect the health and safety of the IRS workforce
and taxpayers before later shifting into a socially distanced, mostly virtual operating
environment. In FY2020 the IRS processed more than 163 million individual tax returns,
including more than 125 million individual refunds totaling more than $320 billion. At the
same time, within two weeks following enactment of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and
Economic Security (CARES) Act, the IRS began processing 161 million Economic
Impact Payments totaling approximately $271 billion. EIP outreach materials were
translated and made available in an unprecedented 35 languages. At the end of 2020,
within two days following the enactment of the Coronavirus Response and Relief
Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021, the IRS processed an additional 147 million
Economic Impact Payments totaling more than $142 billion.
During 2020, as part of a larger effort to reach underserved communities, the IRS
pursued a number of aggressive steps to expand information and assistance available
to taxpayers in additional languages, including providing the 2020 Individual Income Tax
Return, Form 1040, in Spanish for the first time. As part of this expansion, the 2020
Form 1040 will also give taxpayers the opportunity to indicate whether they wish to be
contacted in a language other than English, many of the pages on the IRS.gov site are
now available in multiple languages, and basic tax information is newly available in 20
languages on IRS.gov. Taxpayers who interact with the IRS now have access to over
the phone interpreter services in more than 350 languages. The IRS has also recently
begun inserting information about translation services and other multilingual options into
the high-volume notices provided to taxpayers. The agency has also been increasing its
multilingual outreach on Instagram, Twitter and other social media platforms and plans
to continue these efforts on other agency priorities.
Previously, Mr. Rettig was with the law firm of Hochman, Salkin, Rettig, Toscher &
Perez, P.C., for more than 36 years. In his practice, Mr. Rettig represented thousands of
individuals, businesses and corporate taxpayers before the IRS, the Department of
Justice Tax Division, federal and state courts and state taxing authorities. These cases
involved civil examinations and appeals, criminal investigations and tax collection
matters.
Mr. Rettig has held leadership roles in a number of professional organizations, most
recently serving as Vice Chair-Administration, for the American Bar Association’s
Section of Taxation, and President of the American College of Tax Counsel. He was a
member of the IRS Advisory Council (IRSAC) for three years beginning in 2008, and
served as IRSAC’s chair from 2010 to 2011. He also served as Chair of the Taxation
Section of the State Bar of California and has served on the advisory boards of both the
Franchise Tax Board and the Board of Equalization in his home state of California.
Mr. Rettig has received numerous professional honors during his career from
organizations across the country. He has been a featured speaker and panelist at
hundreds of tax conferences throughout the U.S., Europe and Central America and has
authored numerous tax-related articles.
He received a B.A. in Economics from the University of California at Los Angeles, as
well as a J.D. with honors from Pepperdine University and an LL.M. in taxation from
New York University.
Mr. Rettig, who is married to Tam Rettig, is also active in numerous civic and
philanthropic activities. He’s the founder of the UCLA Extension VETS COUNT
Scholarship Fund designed to provide scholarships for active duty and retired military
personnel who are working to realize their career goals in tax, accounting, wealth
management, and other areas of the financial services industry as well as basic
coursework for personal growth in budgeting, financial literacy, and investing. He also
supports the Wounded Warrior Project, Advance Guard.


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