Rick Scott balks at revamped proposal for IRS ‘snooping’, says it targets ‘lower middle class’

Sen. Rick Scott. Image via AP.

U.S. Sen. Rick Scott staunchly opposed a proposal to have the Internal Revenue Service monitor transactions of $600 or more as part of budget reconciliation, and he opposes the revamp that would set the threshold for so-called “snooping” at $10,000.

Even though the White House claims the proposal targets “high net worth individuals not paying the taxes they owe,” Scott feels differently. The Senator contends the proposal really targets the lower middle class and the middle class, which he said Wednesday was “where all the money is.”

“If you make $5,000 and spend $5,000, they’re going to go through all that. That’s $10,000. So they’re going after everybody’s money,” Scott said.

“If you want to raise taxes, you can’t just raise them on the rich. The rich don’t make enough money. It’s the middle class, it’s the lower middle class. That’s where all the money is,” Scott said. “They’re going to go after your pocketbook, that is what they want to do. They believe that this is their money.”

“If you think about this, this is snooping, this is like what Communist China does. In America, they’re going to get to look at all my bank accounts? It’s wrong,” Scott said.

The Senator is a multi-millionaire, with an estimated net worth in excess of $200 million. He made the comments Wednesday on the Fox Business Network’s Varney and Co.

Meanwhile, the White House and Senate Democrats characterize the proposal differently. Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters Tuesday that most workers, such as those who get W-2s, would not be targeted.

“At the core of a discrepancy in the ways types of income are reported to the IRS are opaque income sources frequently which avoid — frequently avoid scrutiny, while wages and federal benefits are typically subject to full compliance,” Psaki said.

“What we’re talking about here are people who are high-net-worth individuals who are not paying the taxes they owe — something we think everybody believes should happen and can help pay for in a range of important investments to make us more competitive,” Psaki added.

The $10,000 threshold was chosen, says U.S. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, because it is a number used for similar banking requirements related to flagging transactions.

“This is about wealthy business owners at the tippy top of the top. That’s where the unpaid taxes are,” Wyden said.