Bessent says he is performing IRS commissioner duties amid Trump tax settlement scrutiny

Key points

• Scott Bessent, US treasury secretary, during a Senate Finance Committee hearing in Washington, DC, US, on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Wednesday that he is "performing the duties" of Internal Revenue Service commissioner, even as he insisted he is not the agency's acting commissioner, during a heated Senate exchange over President Donald Trump settlement with the IRS.
• Bessent, who had been the acting IRS commissioner since August, took over the commissioner duties in a little-noticed move 2½ months ago, the agency said in a post on its website March 13. The IRS said Bessent's time as acting commissioner had "expired" but that he "retains the authority and responsibility to perform the functions and duties of vacant Treasury offices that are not filled on an acting basis." The distinction became central during questioning at a Senate Finance Committee hearing from Sen.
• Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev.