The IRS is on its third Commissioner in just over a month. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent announced that IRS Chief Operating Officer Melanie Krause will become acting IRS Commissioner following the retirement announcement of Doug O’Donnell.
O’Donnell had served as Acting Commissioner following former IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel’s departure on January 20, 2025 (one week before the tax season officially kicked off). His departure on February 28 marks a remarkable 39-day span of rotating Commissioners.
Danny Werfel
It is widely believed that Werfel was being pushed out early by the Trump administration and hoped to avoid a messy departure. Werfel released a statement before he left, saying, in part, “After significant introspection and consultation with others, I’ve determined the best way to support a successful transition is to depart the IRS on January 20, 2025. While leaving a job you love is never easy, I take comfort in knowing that the civil servant leaders and employees at the IRS are the exact right team to effectively steward this organization forward until a new IRS Commissioner is confirmed.”
Commissioners are nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate—the IRS Commissioner and the IRS Chief Counsel are the only federal appointees in the agency. IRS Commissioners typically serve a five-year term from the date of their nomination, which means that Werfel is expected to leave in 2027. However, breaking with tradition, Trump announced that he would replace Werfel with his own candidate for the job.
Billy Long
Trump’s nominee for the job, Billy Long, has a different resume. Long has no formal training in tax, law, or accounting, no college degree, and never served in Congress on a tax-writing committee. He dropped out of the University of Missouri before returning to school—this time, to an auction training program at the Missouri Auction School. He was told, he explained to Auctioneer Magazine that it was the “Harvard of auctioneering schools.” There, he earned his Certified Auctioneer designation.
Once he made the career switch to auctioneering, Long says that for 20 years, he averaged about 200 auctions per year. Today, he is in the National Auction Association Hall of Fame.
In 2010, Long was elected as the U.S. Representative of Missouri’s 7th Congressional District, serving until 2023. He subsequently ran for the U.S. Senate in 2022 but lost in the Republican primary.
Trump described Long as a “Business and Tax advisor, helping Small Businesses navigate the complexities of complying with the IRS Rules and Regulations.” However, in recent weeks, Democratic Senators have expressed concerns about Long’s tax experience, especially with respect to the employee retention credit (ERC). Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) have sent letters to tax advisory firms asking for more information about his role in promoting the credit.
It’s unclear when the hearing for Long might occur. Werfel, who was nominated by President Biden on November 10, 2022, didn’t face the Senate until February 2023. Charles Rettig (who served before Werfel) waited about seven months for confirmation.
O’Donnell’s Tenure
Following Werfel’s departure in late January, Deputy Commissioner Douglas O’Donnell stepped in as Acting Commissioner (O’Donnell has served as Deputy Commissioner since early 2024).
It’s a familiar role—O’Donnell served as acting IRS Commissioner from November 2022 through March 2023. Before becoming Deputy Commissioner for Services and Enforcement in 2021, Doug served as the IRS Large Business and International (LB&I) Division Commissioner for nearly six years. O’Donnell began his career with the IRS in 1986 as a revenue agent in Washington, DC, and he holds a Bachelor of Science in accounting from the University of Maryland, College Park.
O’Donnell, who never made a formal welcome announcement, has served as Acting Commissioner for just under a month. Last week, he announced plans to retire. IRS Chief Operating Officer Melanie Krause will now serve as the Acting Commissioner.
Melanie Krause
“On behalf of the Treasury Department, I want to thank Doug O’Donnell for his decades of public service and dedication to the nation’s taxpayers,” said Treasury Secretary Bessent. “He has been a remarkable public servant, and I wish him the best in retirement. At the same time, Melanie Krause and the agency’s leadership team are well positioned to serve during this critical period for the nation in advance of the April tax deadline.”
“The IRS has been my professional home for 38 years,” O’Donnell added. “I care deeply about the institution and its people and am confident that Melanie will be an outstanding steward of the Service until a new Commissioner is confirmed.”
Krause has served as the IRS chief operating officer since last year. A relative newcomer to the agency, Krause joined the IRS in October 2021 as the Chief Data & Analytics Officer. In this role, in addition to leading the Research, Applied Analytics, and Statistics (RAAS) team, Krause coordinated research activities, including AI and other advanced analytics. Krause also served as Acting Deputy Commissioner for Services and Enforcement from November 2022 to March 2023.
Before joining the IRS, Krause served as the Assistant Inspector General for Management and Administration with the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General (VA OIG) and was detailed to the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs. Krause maintains an active license as a registered nurse and holds bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
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