By Aimee Green
oregonlive.com
(TNS)
The Internal Revenue Service on Thursday began asking taxpayers across the country to weigh in on a fight that has been brewing in Washington, D.C.: Whether the federal government should continue a Biden-era program that allows taxpayers to file their taxes for free but is at risk of elimination.
Sources say President Donald Trump, who took office in January 2025, wants to do away with the IRS’s Direct File program, which launched on a pilot basis for the 2023 tax year and came to Oregon and other states nationwide in January 2025, as taxpayers filed returns for the 2024 tax year.
In response to a requirement in Trump’s “one big, beautiful bill,” the IRS is soliciting public input through a survey that will be reported to Congress by Oct. 2.
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The Free Online Tax Preparation Feedback Survey gives participants through Sept. 5 to answer a series of seemingly innocuous questions that appear odd because of their obvious answers: Would you like to use a free tax preparation program that would let you file your federal and state taxes for free? Would you like the program to be “easy to use,” keep your “information secure” and ensure that your “return is prepared correctly?”
And, “If you had the option of using an easy-to-use, free online tax preparation program that has all the features you need, how likely would you be to use that program to file your next federal income tax return?”
Survey participants also are asked whether they want the federal government or a private company to operate a free tax preparation and filing program.
Republican members of Congress argue that the federal government is squandering taxpayer dollars on the current IRS Direct File system because other free programs exist. But the myriad choices make it more difficult for taxpayers to select a program that is right for their needs, and some programs have income or other restrictions on who can use them. Opponents also contend that private companies sometimes try to upsell taxpayers into forking over cash for more deluxe tax preparation programs.
Elon Musk, who led the Department of Government Efficiency, was a big proponent of doing away with the IRS’s free filing system. Just days after Trump took office, Musk posted on X, the social media service he owns, that 18F, a segment of the government that created the IRS’s Direct File, had been “deleted.”
The Oregon Department of Revenue is encouraging Oregonians to take part in the IRS’s survey, which it said “could determine the future” of what e-filing looks like.
Oregon launched its own free tax filing system, Direct File Oregon, for the 2023 tax year. For the 2024 tax year, it streamlined the overall tax filing experience by linking with the IRS’s Direct File system, as that system got off the ground.
In a news release Friday, Oregon Department of Revenue Director David Gerstenfeld stressed the importance of clearing obstacles from the path of taxpayers as they file.
“It’s important for Oregon taxpayers to take this opportunity to provide their valuable feedback to the IRS on free tax filing options,” Gerstenfeld said. “Oregon counts on us to create a clear and easy experience for our customers and free tax filing options help us meet that mission.”
Federal officials say survey participants can take part anonymously. The survey can be accessed here.
Photo credit: Natalia Bratslavsky/iStock
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©2025 Advance Local Media LLC. Visit oregonlive.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency LLC.
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Tags: Congress, Income Taxes, IRS, IRS Direct File, Legislation, obbba, Taxes
