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On Monday, U.S. Sen. Dr. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and 14 of his colleagues sent a letter to IRS Commissioner Charles P. Rettig, requesting information to better understand how the IRS enforces the electric vehicle tax credit in light of a Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) audit report that detailed what appear to be systemic problems with the tax credit program.

“On Sept. 30, 2019, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) released an audit report finding that taxpayers improperly claimed $72 million in tax credits for electric vehicles and that the IRS ‘does not have effective processes to identify and prevent [these] erroneous claims,’” the senators wrote. “Notably, in 2011, TIGTA released an audit finding $33 million in tax credits for plug-in electric drive motor vehicles — one in five of every claimed tax credit — were awarded to individuals who owned vehicles that did not qualify. In other words, despite recognizing this fraud eight years ago, it has not only persisted but become even more widespread.”

Cassidy was joined in sending the letter by Sens. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Pat Toomey (R-Pa.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), John Kennedy (R-La.), and James Inhofe (R-Okla.).