Congressional Republicans have a nasty habit that they just can’t seem to break: trying to keep costs high for working people. They voted against capping insulin prices at $35 a month for seniors. They voted against cracking down on Big Oil’s price gouging at the pump. They’re attempting to reverse the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s new plan to cap credit card junk fees. I could write a whole email about each of those different shameful actions. But here’s what I’ll focus on today: Congressional Republicans are also trying to repeal the IRS’s new free tax filing program — in other words, they’re trying to force Americans to fork over money to big tax prep companies. We can’t let them succeed. Add your name to say you support the IRS’s Direct File program and oppose Republicans’ attempts to repeal it. And let’s fight them side by side. Now, you might remember that we’ve been fighting tooth and nail for free tax filing. I’ve introduced legislation, we’ve raised our voices, we’ve pushed back against the swarms of lobbyists from big tax firms trying to stop us — and as part of the Inflation Reduction Act, we secured funding to make it happen. This year, the IRS launched the Direct File pilot program for 12 states — including Massachusetts! And it was a big success: - Over 140,000 taxpayers used the tool
- They saved more than $90 million in refunds and an estimated $5.6 million in tax preparation fees on their federal returns alone
- A survey of 11,000 users found that 90% ranked their experience with Direct File as “Excellent” or “Above Average”
- And 90% of survey respondents who used customer service similarly found the experience “Excellent” or “Above Average”
Based on these great results, I urged the IRS to expand the program and make it permanent. That’s exactly what they did. Last month, we got the terrific news that millions more Americans will get the option to file directly with the IRS — rather than waste an average of 9 hours and $150 with shady tax prep giants like TurboTax and H&R Block. Sounds great, right? Who could object? Apparently, Republican U.S. House members. After all, the GOP wants to help big corporations — like Big Pharma, Big Oil, the credit card industry, and tax prep giants like Intuit TurboTax and H&R Block — look after their bottom lines. So they’re trying to repeal this good thing that the government is doing for working people. While Republican politicians continue catering to corporate interests and trying to keep costs high for working people, I’ll continue fighting to tackle corporate greed and bring down costs. Including for the tax filing process. Tax filing should be fast and free, no matter how mad it makes the big tax prep giants. But House Republicans are trying to end the Direct File program before it has a chance to get fully off the ground. We can’t let them. We’ve got to fight back. If you agree, add your name here, and we’ll fight together to stop the GOP’s attacks on the Direct File program. Thanks for being a part of this, Elizabeth  | 
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