IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel told the agency’s employees that he intends to resign on President Trump’s Inauguration Day.

“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,” Werfel said in a letter, according to the Associated Press.

“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,” he added.

JUST IN: IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel has announced his resignation. pic.twitter.com/XIXHEAdBwM

— Resist the Mainstream (@ResisttheMS) January 17, 2025

From the Associated Press:

Werfel’s term was not scheduled to end until 2027. His early departure on Monday is unusual, since IRS commissioners’ terms typically extend from one presidential administration into another. Werfel’s term began in March 2023, under President Joe Biden, a Democrat, and was set to end in November 2027, under Trump, a Republican.

However, Trump in December announced plans to nominate former Missouri congressman Billy Long, who worked as an auctioneer before serving six terms in the House, to serve as the next IRS commissioner.

“While I had always intended to complete my full term as Commissioner,” Werfel said, “the President-elect has announced his plan to nominate a new IRS Commissioner. I have been touched by those who have reached out to me to share how they were hopeful that I could remain in seat and continue the important work underway. But as civil servants, we have a job to do, and that job is to now ensure a new Commissioner is set up for success.”

Democrats including Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon have called Long’s nomination “a bizarre choice.”

🚨 BREAKING: IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel resigns unexpectedly! 🇺🇸 His term was due in 2027, but he's out early. Trump's pick, Billy Long, awaits Senate confirmation. 📉 More updates to follow. #IRS #WerfelResigns pic.twitter.com/TbG7v5YOwp

— CryptoMarketControl (@CryptoMarketCon) January 17, 2025

Per USA TODAY:

Werfel, in a letter to agency staff obtained by the Wall Street Journal said that if he had tried to remain in office during Long’s confirmation process, it would have been “hard to predict what type of distractions this unprecedented scenario would create.”

The IRS traditionally experiences little turnover between presidents. Werfel’s resignation marks the first inauguration day exit of an IRS commissioner since Bill Clinton assumed office in January 1993.

The commissioner and chief counsel are the agency’s only political appointees, and a 1998 reform bill established five-year terms for IRS commissioners in an effort to keep politics out of tax enforcement. Every president since the 1998 reform − to include Trump in his first term − retained the serving IRS commissioner.