Donald Gainsborough stands at the epicenter of a historic pivot in federal administration, wielding a vision that favors lean, tech-driven efficiency over traditional bureaucratic expansion. As a political savant and the leader of Government Curated, he has navigated the complex terrain of policy and legislation with a focus on streamlining the machinery of the state. His recent oversight of the Internal Revenue Service has been marked by a radical reduction in the workforce and a foundational shift in how the government interacts with taxpayers. This conversation explores the logic behind the recent departure of 25,000 employees, the aggressive integration of artificial intelligence to bridge the staffing gap, and the challenges of managing a massive agency through centralized leadership. We also delve into the controversial decision to sever ties with federal unions and what these structural changes mean for the future of tax compliance and public service.
The workforce was recently reduced by 25,000 employees while telephone service standards were adjusted to a 70% answer rate. How does this leaner staffing level impact long-term operational stability, and what specific metrics beyond wait times are being monitored to ensure the quality of audits for high-income earners remains high?
Maintaining a workforce of approximately 75,000 employees is not just a budgetary necessity; I believe it is actually the ideal staffing level for a modern, efficient agency. While we did shed 25,000 positions that were added without clear empirical justification, we are finding that productivity is actually higher when the organization isn’t bogged down by redundant layers. By adjusting our telephone service standard from 85% down to a more realistic 70% answer rate, we are focusing on the quality of the interactions rather than just the volume. To ensure high-income audits remain rigorous, we are merging existing customer service data with automated response systems and online queries to create a more holistic view of taxpayer behavior. We are currently 40% through the tax season, and the data suggests that callers are waiting less than 10 minutes to get through, which proves that a leaner team can still deliver stable results.
Artificial intelligence is now being integrated to assist customer service representatives and improve tax compliance. How are these tools specifically being deployed to handle complex inquiries, and what step-by-step training protocols are in place for the remaining 75,000 employees to ensure they can effectively manage this technological transition?
Artificial intelligence is the cornerstone of our strategy to do more with less, acting as a force multiplier for our remaining 75,000 staff members. These AI tools are being deployed to provide real-time information to customer service representatives, allowing them to pull complex tax law answers in seconds rather than making taxpayers wait on hold while they flip through manuals. We are moving toward a system where AI will eventually handle the bulk of routine tax compliance checks, freeing up our human experts to tackle the most nuanced cases of high-level evasion. The training protocol involves transitioning our workforce away from manual data entry and toward oversight roles where they manage the AI’s output. I believe AI will fundamentally change the way our workforce works for the better, making the entire implementation process faster and more accurate for every American.
The agency has been restructured to remove layers of management so more functions report directly to the chief executive. What are the practical risks of this centralized approach when one leader oversees both the IRS and the Social Security Administration, and how do you prevent bottlenecking during peak filing seasons?
Restructuring the agency to remove unnecessary layers of management was essential to ensure that more functions report directly to the top, allowing for faster decision-making during high-pressure periods. While it is true that I am currently managing both the IRS and the Social Security Administration, this centralized approach actually reduces the friction often found between competing departmental silos. We prevent bottlenecking by empowering our senior leads to make tactical decisions without needing to navigate five or six layers of middle management. Despite the critics who claimed this structure would fail, we are seeing fewer requests for assistance from congressional offices, which is a strong indicator that the streamlined reporting structure is working. It allows me to have a direct pulse on the agency’s performance without the “papering over” of issues that often happens in more decentralized, bloated organizations.
The division responsible for processing original and amended tax returns has filled only 2% of its authorized positions for the upcoming 2026 season. Given the recent loss of 8,300 workers in customer service roles, what is the strategy for managing the backlog of returns without relying on temporary hires?
While the inspector general noted that we have only hired 50 employees—or 2% of the authorized level—for return processing in 2026, this number must be viewed in the context of our broader technological shift. We did lose 8,300 workers in customer service and processing roles, but we have countered that by hiring 2,200 strategic employees specifically to support the busiest times of the year. Our strategy relies on the fact that automated processing is becoming significantly more capable, reducing the need for the massive headcount previously thought necessary. We are not interested in hiring for the sake of reaching a number that was never empirically proven to be “right” in the first place. Instead, we are focusing on clearing backlogs through improved digital workflows and the integration of new provisions from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which simplifies many of these administrative burdens.
Severing ties with the federal employees’ union removes collective bargaining for thousands of workers. How will this change affect employee retention during high-pressure implementation periods, and what alternative channels have been established for staff to raise concerns about their workload or the quality of their work environment?
The decision to sever ties with the union follows a direct executive order and reflects the reality that federal employees already enjoy some of the most robust protections and benefits in the world. Under current statutes, these workers have greater benefits than any union could possibly negotiate for them, so they are effectively losing nothing in terms of security or compensation. We believe that direct communication between staff and management is more effective than the adversarial nature of collective bargaining during high-pressure filing seasons. Employees can raise concerns directly through our streamlined management structure, which allows for quicker responses to workload issues than a lengthy grievance process ever could. I am confident that our workforce will remain stable because the environment we are building is one of high performance and clear expectations, rather than bureaucratic negotiation.
Employees from human resources and IT are currently being reassigned to taxpayer service roles to handle filing season demands. What impact does this shift have on the agency’s underlying technical infrastructure, and how are you ensuring these reassigned workers are qualified to provide accurate advice to the public?
Reassigning employees from internal departments like HR and IT to the front lines is a strategic move to ensure we have “bodies in chairs” during the most critical weeks of the year. While some might worry about the impact on our technical infrastructure, these reassignments are temporary and are designed to utilize the broad institutional knowledge these professionals already possess. To ensure accuracy, these reassigned workers are paired with the AI tools I mentioned earlier, which serve as a digital safety net to provide the correct answers to taxpayer questions. This cross-functional training actually makes our agency more resilient, as it breaks down the silos that often prevent different departments from understanding the taxpayer experience. We are hearing from every corner that the season is going well, which validates our decision to use every available resource to meet the public’s needs.
What is your forecast for the future of tax administration in the United States?
The future of tax administration lies in a “frictionless” model where the vast majority of interactions are handled by intelligent, automated systems that require very little human intervention. I forecast that within the next few years, the debate over staffing levels will become obsolete because our 75,000 employees will be doing the work that used to require twice that number. We will see the tax compliance rate increase significantly as AI identifies discrepancies that were previously impossible for human auditors to catch in a sea of paperwork. Ultimately, the IRS will transition from a heavy, labor-intensive bureaucracy into a sleek, technology-first organization that provides faster service with a much smaller footprint. Success will no longer be measured by how many people we hire, but by how quickly and accurately we can process the nation’s revenue.
