IRS chief information officer announces resignation on eve of tax-filing day

By Nathan Layne and Tim Reid

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The chief information officer at the Internal Revenue Service said he would resign, according to an email sent to staff and seen by Reuters on Monday, the latest in a string of high-profile departures at the tax-collecting agency in the run-up to the April 15 filing deadline for most U.S. taxpayers.

CIO Rajiv Uppal, whose job was to oversee the development and improvement of the IRS' computer and IT systems, said his resignation would be effective late this month. The move came as President Donald Trump's administration and tech billionaire Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency are seeking to cut thousands of IRS staff.

"After careful thought, I've decided to depart the IRS effective April 28, 2025," Uppal wrote to staff.

"I do understand this is a time of transition for many, and I want to thank you for your steady commitment through it all."

The IRS, the White House and DOGE did not immediately response to a request for comment. Uppal did not mention the work of DOGE in his resignation letter.

Members of Musk's cost-cutting DOGE team have been inside the IRS since February and have gained access to agency databases containing taxpayer information.

Uppal is the latest in a series of high-ranking officials to leave the IRS. Earlier this month, the acting head of the agency, Melanie Krause, as well as its chief risk, privacy and financial officers, announced their resignations.

Krause and Chief Privacy Officer Kathleen Walters both quit in part over their concerns about the legality of a deal the agency struck with the Department of Homeland Security under which taxpayer data will be provided to the DHS to help their agents locate migrants.

In his resignation email, Uppal said Kaschit Pandya, the chief technology officer, would serve as acting CIO while leadership finalizes long-term plans for the position. Pandya has been working closely with DOGE members over the past two months and has already assumed many of the responsibilities of the CIO, according to two people familiar with the matter.

Musk and Trump say they want to cut the cost and size of the federal bureaucracy and eliminate waste and fraud, including at the IRS.

Some former IRS officials and governance experts have warned that creating uncertainty and making cuts at the IRS during the height of tax-filing season could result in the loss of tax revenue into government coffers.

(Reporting by Nathan Layne in Connecticut and Tim Reid in Washington; Editing by Scott Malone and Stephen Coates)