Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin last week rejected a subpoena by House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal for President Donald Trump’s tax returns. | M. Scott Mahaskey/POLITICO Legal Mnuchin dismisses IRS memo saying Congress must be given Trump's tax returns

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Wednesday dismissed an internal IRS memo concluding it is "mandatory" for the IRS to turn over President Donald Trump's tax returns to Congress unless the president invokes executive privilege.

“I actually don’t believe that’s the case,” he told the House Financial Services Committee at an unrelated hearing where he was repeatedly questioned about his refusal to turn over Trump's returns. “That memo, I understand, is addressing a different issue, and is not addressing the issue that we and the Department of Justice looked at.”


In rejecting House Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal’s (D-Mass.) request for six years’ worth of Trump’s returns, Mnuchin has said that Treasury and Justice have concluded there must be a “legitimate” legislative reason for the request, and that Neal doesn’t have one.

The Washington Post reported Tuesday that the draft IRS memo concluded that the Treasury secretary’s “obligation to disclose return and return information would not be affected by the failure of a tax writing committee” to give a reason for the request. The "only basis [for] the agency’s refusal to comply with a committee’s subpoena would be the invocation of the doctrine of executive privilege.”

Neal requested Trump’s returns in April, saying the committee needs them to vet how the IRS conducts its routine audits of presidential tax returns. He cited a law that says the Treasury secretary “shall” turn over tax returns if requested by the heads of Congress' tax committees.

POLITICO Playbook newsletter Sign up today to receive the #1-rated newsletter in politics Email Sign Up By signing up you agree to receive email newsletters or alerts from POLITICO. You can unsubscribe at any time. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Mnuchin said he and IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig were “not aware” of the IRS memo until the Post inquired about it on Tuesday.

“We’re trying to find out who wrote the memo, where it came from, when it was and why it wasn’t distributed,” he said.

Financial Services Chairwoman Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) said she would ask the House general counsel whether Mnuchin should be held in contempt of Congress for failing to give lawmakers documents they have requested.

Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.) raised the possibility, saying Mnuchin was acting “unlawfully” in refusing to hand over the tax returns and other documents Lynch didn’t specify.

"We will take your question to general counsel and we will put it in writing," Waters told Lynch, "and we will seek an answer from him or her about what our next step could or should be given the way that you have described what you think may be contempt based on what the law says."

Mnuchin said Treasury has "tried to be responsive to Congress on hundreds if not thousands of requests for information."

"On this one request [for Trump's returns] we’ve been advised that there are different legal views and this is why it will most likely go to the" courts, he said. "And if the third branch of government opines on Congress’ right, then we would obviously supply the documents.”

Mnuchin last week rejected a subpoena by Neal for the returns, and Democrats are expected to ask a court to order Treasury to turn them over.

“So months ago, I said that I believe that the tax case would end up in court," Neal told reporters Wednesday. "I knew that from day one. And that's why we have been so careful in terms of following the instruction of the Office of General Counsel.”

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the issue also came up during a meeting Wednesday where some House Democrats pushed for starting impeachment proceedings against Trump.

"We had another presentation from Richie Neal about what’s happening on the taxes," Pelosi told reporters. "It’s very clear — it is the law of the land."

Aaron Lorenzo contributed to this report.