A US federal judge ruled that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) broke the law by disclosing confidential taxpayer information "approximately 42,695 times" to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly found the IRS violated Code 6103, one of the strictest confidentiality laws in federal statute, which largely prohibits disclosure of tax return information without consent. The IRS provided ICE with information on 47,000 of the 1.28 million people requested.

According to a declaration by IRS chief risk and control officer Dottie Romo, in most cases the tax agency gave ICE additional address information in violation of privacy rules designed to protect taxpayer data.

While the government is appealing, the ruling is significant as Romo's declaration supports the appeal. The judge called the declaration "a significant development in this case".

The case stems from efforts under the Trump administration to consolidate government data, alarming rights advocates concerned about erosion of taxpayer privacy.

The Center for Taxpayer Rights sued the government, citing protections instituted after the 1972 Watergate scandal. Founder Nina Olson stated, "IRS has an unlawful policy that violates the Internal Revenue Code's protections by releasing addresses in a way that violates the law's requirements."

IRS and Treasury Department representatives did not respond to Associated Press requests for comment. Currently, the data-sharing agreement allows ICE to submit names and addresses of illegal immigrants in the US to the IRS for cross-verification against tax records.

The agreement, signed by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, led to the resignation of the then-acting IRS commissioner. Several ongoing cases challenge the agreement between IRS and immigration authorities.

Source: www.aljazeera.com