In a letter dated May 9, Warren told Treasury Secretary Janet
Yellen she was concerned that many recommendations made by the
Treasury Advisory Committee on Racial Equity (TACRE) had not
been implemented, including reforms to the IRS audit process.
Yellen named 24 experts to the committee to analyze U.S.
economic factors that resulted in unfavorable conditions for
Black, Latino and Native Americans. They have made over 40
recommendations to date, but experts say change has been slow.
Warren said the recommendations would improve economic
conditions for communities that face barriers to building equity
and assuring financial security for their families, and urged
Yellen to implement them swiftly.
"I am concerned that the recommendations made by members of the
TACRE remain in limbo at Treasury," Warren wrote in the letter,
which was first reported by Reuters.
In response to the letter, Treasury cited rapid recoveries in
Black and Latino unemployment rates, and significant gains in
household wealth for both groups, relative to previous
downturns.
“The Treasury Department putting equity at the center of policy
implementation led to the most equitable economic recovery on
record, and we continue to prioritize these efforts,” a
spokesperson said.
One committee member, Dorothy Brown, a tax lawyer and law
professor, told Marketplace in January she worried that Treasury
was not embracing the recommendations and saw the committee as a
"check-the-box" exercise.
Warren asked Treasury to brief her staff by May 23 on the
timeline for implementing the remaining proposals, including
reforms to the Internal Revenue Service's auditing progress, and
creation of outreach tools to ensure low-income tax credits and
green energy credits reached underserved communities.
The Democratic senator's letter comes as President Joe Biden
works to shore up support in communities of color ahead of the
November presidential election, in which he is seeking a second
term. A number of Republican senators have challenged the
creation of the committee, and its work has been closely
scrutinized.
(Reporting by Andrea ShalalEditing by Frances KerryEditing by
Jacqueline Wong and Frances Kerry)
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