Shuffling the DOJ Tax Deck Once Again (4/10/26; 4/11/26)

The Acting Attorney General announced by memo dated 4/7/26, here, some initial details of the National Fraud Enforcement Division that President Trump created by Executive Order 14395, titled "Establishing the Task Force to Eliminate Fraud," here. In part relevant to tax crimes enforcement, the memo says (p. 2, bold-face supplied by JAT):

• Effective immediately, the Assistant Attorney General for the National Fraud Enforcement Division shall assume operational control of the Criminal Division's Tax Section, the Health Care Fraud Unit, and the Market, Government, and Consumer Fraud Unit, and shall establish the priorities and direct the allocation of resources within them. During this interim period, the existing supervisory chains responsible for the above-named units and section will continue to exercise supervisory authority for their personnel, subject to oversight and direction from the Assistant Attorney General for the National Fraud Enforcement Division.

Relative to the priorities of criminal tax enforcement, does this re-alignment (more like a shuffling of the deck) accomplish anything meaningful, unless the signal is to use more criminal tax resources to support nontax criminal initiatives rather than to support the tax system.

Added 4/11/26 2:00pm:

ThomsonReuters has this article: Maureen Leddy, DOJ Criminal Tax Section Moves Again (ThomsonReuters 4/10/26), here. Key excerpts:

Focus on Misuse of Federal Funds

          The new task force is chaired by Vice President Vance, and includes representatives from Treasury, the Department of Justice, and several other agencies. Its directive is to develop "a comprehensive national strategy to stop fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs, including programs administered jointly with State, local, tribal, and territorial partners."

          The focus of the executive order is on misuse of taxpayer funds. Likewise, Blanche's memo announcing the Tax Section move emphasizes that the "core mission" of the new National Fraud Enforcement Division is "to zealously investigate and prosecute those who steal or fraudulently misuse taxpayer dollars." The memo also calls for realignment of other "criminal prosecutorial resources" into the National Fraud Enforcement Division.

          However, some are worried that the change means a narrowed mission for the Criminal Division's Tax Section. "Moving DOJ's Tax Section to the National Fraud Enforcement Division sends the unfortunate signal that the acting Attorney General is interested in limiting the scope of DOJ's tax enforcement to those who steal or fraudulently misuse taxpayer dollars" said Dave Hubbert, senior fellow at NYU's Tax Law Center and the former head of the DOJ Tax Division.

          Hubbert is concerned that the move "could allow corporations and wealthy individuals to cheat on their taxes and go unpunished."

          Not all fraud directly involves the misuse of taxpayer dollars, according to the Tax Law Center. It cites recently prosecuted cases involving tax shelter schemes. While these are "clearly fraud," they are "not clearly related to fraud of a government program," the Tax Law Center explains.

          Tax prosecutions were already down in 2025, per a recent Reuters investigation. For the period of January 1 to November 1, 2025, the number of people federal prosecutors charged with violating tax laws was 27% less than the same period in 2024, Reuters found.

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          "The reasons for abolishing the Tax Division and moving its criminal enforcement sections to the Criminal Division and now to the National Fraud Enforcement Division were never clearly articulated," said Hubbert. He stressed that "the danger" is that "prosecutors will be pulled off necessary tax enforcement."