Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent defended the decision to cancel the IRS’s Direct File program during a Senate exchange on Wednesday, arguing the “free” service cost taxpayers $72 million annually.
During a hearing, Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) pressed Bessent on why the program was scrapped, calling it “free and easy to use.” Bessent pushed back, saying the service was only free to users, not taxpayers.
“It wasn’t free,” Bessent said. “It was $72 million for about 300,000 taxpayers.”
Roughly 60% of users did not complete their filings through the platform.
Sen. @ChrisCoons: “Why’d you shut down Direct File when it was free and easy to use?”
@SecScottBessent: “It wasn’t free and the—”Coons: “Direct File was free to taxpayers.”
Bessent: “Not to the American people. It was … $72 million for about 300,00 taxpayers.” pic.twitter.com/fdku7e4vBh
— CSPAN (@cspan) April 22, 2026
Bessent argued that taxpayers could instead use private options such as FreeTaxUSA to file federal returns at no cost.
The IRS launched Direct File as a pilot program to allow taxpayers with relatively simple returns to file directly with the government, bypassing private tax preparation companies. It was rolled out in phases with limited eligibility.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), a supporter of the program, has proposed legislation to reinstate it.
“It doesn’t make any sense for [President Donald] Trump and [former Trump adviser Elon] Musk to get rid of Direct File—unless they want to do a big favor for giant tax prep companies by squeezing more Americans into paying for those products,” Warren said, pointing to Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiative.
Treasury officials have instead pointed toward expanding the existing Free File program, which relies on private tax software companies to provide free filing options for eligible taxpayers, rather than building a permanent government-run system.
