IRS chief information officer announces resignation on eve of tax-filing day

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The chief information officer at the Internal Revenue Service said he would resign, according to an email sent to staff and seen by Reuters on Monday, the day before the April 15 tax-filing deadline for most U.S. taxpayers.

CIO Rajiv Uppal, whose job was to oversee the development and improvement of the IRS' computer and IT systems, said his resignation from the tax agency would be effective late this. The move came as President Donald Trump's administration and tech billionaire Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency are seeking to cut thousands of IRS staff.

"After careful thought, I've decided to depart the IRS effective April 28, 2025," Uppal wrote to staff. He added, "I do understand this is a time of transition for many, and I want to thank you for your steady commitment through it all."

Members of Musk's cost-cutting DOGE team have been inside the IRS since February and have gained access to agency databases containing taxpayer information.

Uppal's departure will likely leave Kaschit Pandya, the chief technology officer, to play an even larger role managing the agency's IT systems, according to two people familiar with the matter. Pandya has been working closely with members of DOGE over the past two months, the people said.

Musk and Trump say they want to cut the cost and size of the federal bureaucracy and eliminate waste and fraud, including at the IRS.

Some former IRS officials and governance experts have warned that creating uncertainty and making cuts at the IRS during the height of tax-filing season could result in the loss of tax revenue into government coffers.

The IRS, the White House and DOGE did not immediately response to a request for comment.

Uppal did not mention the work of DOGE in his resignation letter.

(Reporting by Nathan Layne in Connecticut and Tim Reid in Washington; Editing by Scott Malone and Cynthia Osterman)