The U.S. House of Representatives committee, controlled by Democrats, was planning to make public six years of former President Donald Trump’s tax returns on Friday.
An unusual action just a few days before Republicans is set to take control of the House.
The release of Trump’s tax returns for the years 2015 to 2020 will mark the end of a long-standing conflict between the former Republican president and Democratic lawmakers.
In 2019, House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal requested the release of Trump’s tax returns, stating that Congress needed to review them in order to determine if legislation on presidential tax returns was necessary.
Trump, who took office in 2017 and was the first presidential candidate in recent history not to release his taxes, sued the committee in an attempt to keep them private.
The Supreme Court ultimately ruled in favor of the committee in November.
In a report last week, the committee disclosed its findings from its review of the tax documents, stating that the IRS violated its own guidelines by failing to audit Trump for three out of four years while he was in office.
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The Congress Panel Revealed Trump Did Not Pay Income Tax During his Tenure
The information released by the panel revealed that he did not pay any income tax in 2020, his final full year as president, despite earning millions of dollars from his extensive business ventures.
The records reveal that his income and tax liability fluctuated significantly from 2015 to 2020, during his first presidential campaign and subsequent term in office.
They also show that Trump and his wife Melania claimed significant deductions and losses, resulting in little or no income tax being paid for several in those years.
Due to the narrow margin of the Republican victory in the November midterm elections, Democrats were under pressure to quickly find a way to address the release of the tax returns once they obtained them, as Republicans will assume control of the House on January 3.
Republicans have criticized the pursuit of the tax returns as being politically motivated.
Prior to its winter recess, the Democrat-controlled House passed a bill that would require the IRS to complete audits of presidential tax filings within 90 days of the president’s inauguration.