A federal appeals court has allowed Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to access taxpayer information.
In a 3–0 decision on Feb. 24, the court unanimously disagreed with several nonprofit organizations’ argument that ICE violated the Administrative Procedures Act, which governs how federal agencies develop regulations.
U.S. Circuit Judge Harry Edwards, who wrote the opinion for the court, said ICE did not engage in the type of final action subject to the Act and that the agency otherwise followed federal restrictions on data sharing.
“Furthermore, if we find, as we do, that the ‘best reading’ of the statute does not support Appellants’ position, then no agency action may countermand the court’s judgment,” the judge wrote in the ruling.
The court also cited a “straightforward” and “crystal clear” statute that outlines when it is acceptable for the IRS to disclose tax return information.
“[The statute’s] text unambiguously authorizes IRS to disclose taxpayer address information,” Edwards wrote.
Hellbound and Down 