The chaos at the Internal Revenue Service began almost immediately after the first envoy from the Department of Government Efficiency arrived last month at the agency’s Washington, DC, headquarters.

Acting chief counsel William Paul has been reportedly demoted because he refused to cooperate with Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, as DOGE representatives allegedly sought to share taxpayer information with other federal agencies.

IRS Direct File is only in its second year of letting taxpayers file directly with the IRS online, but it may be a casualty of Elon Musk’s DOGE.

The Trump administration, in collaboration with the newly established Department of Efficiency, proposed a significant reduction in the workforce of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). This initiative aimed to streamline government operations but posed a substantial risk to the IRS's core functions.

Despite its growing popularity with members of the American public, the IRS Direct File’s fate remains unclear.