U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen Backs IRS Ruling Describing Data Gathering As ‘Routine’

The United States Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen may well seem to be backing President Joe Biden’s motion making it a requisite for banks to report information to the Internal Revenue Service on transactions that will be going over $600 and deemed such move as a routine. The secretary faced much scrutiny after this as this was a clear invasion of privacy.  

Yellen supports IRS ruling  

On Tuesday, Secretary Yellen recently sat down with CNBC’s “Squawk Box” and asked whether the IRS can gather additional data from U.S. taxpayers and bank accounts. She responded that the said government agency does have “wherewithal” to do such, adding that as of late, on each of the bank account that earns an annual interest of $10, the bank is tasked to report it to the IRS.  

Further, she also mentioned that this is included within the information base in which reports on dividends in other income and W2s are a part of stating that such data gathering is just part of the routine. However, as mentioned, the majority of the Republicans see it as invasive.  

Yellen on U.S. debt  

Sec. Yellen also touched on the topic of why she believes that the U.S. economy would be plunging to recession if Congress did not address the government’s borrowing limit before an unprecedented default on the country’s debt.  

In line with this, she regarded October 18, 2021, as a deadline highlighting that things would be catastrophic not to pay the government’s bills.  

On Monday, President Biden has called on Congress to increase the limit of the country’s debt to circumvent a near-certain economic recession. The head of state even criticized both Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. And the Republicans for blocking legislation that would lift the borrowing cap via a filibuster.  

Sec. Yellen is said to have already warned Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., that the U.S. will no longer have the ability to honor its debts around October 18. It is said that lawmakers must either suspend or increase the limit of the country’s debt prior to the date above or endure the consequence of a never-before-seen U.S. default.