Garbage-hauling giant Waste Management Inc. has filed a lawsuit in a D.C. federal court to compel the IRS to produce its 2017 tax files, including audit records. The company alleges that the agency has been unreasonably delaying the process, violating the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
IRS audit records lawsuit : Waste Management’s FOIA Complaint
In the complaint filed Wednesday, Waste Management accuses the Internal Revenue Service of not fully complying with a public records request made in June 2023. According to Waste Management, the IRS’s failure to adhere to FOIA’s time limits constitutes wrongful withholding of records.
The 11-page complaint outlines extensive correspondence between Waste Management’s attorneys and the IRS. Notably, the IRS informed Waste Management on June 10 that it had provided some documents through an electronic portal. However, when Waste Management accessed the portal, no documents were available, and subsequent requests for clarification went unanswered.
IRS’s Delays and Incomplete Responses
Waste Management’s records request is linked to the IRS’s audit of its 2017 tax return and the company’s appeal against a proposed adjustment to its taxable income for that year. The company requested its entire administrative file from both the IRS and its independent office of appeals.
