Hill-Evans bill to maintain state access to federal tax information passes House
Rep. Carol Hill-Evans September 30, 2026
HARRISBURG, Sept. 30 – Today, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives voted to pass a bill introduced by Rep. Carol Hill-Evans, D-York, that would bring Pennsylvania law into compliance with updated requirements for maintaining access to highly-sensitive federal tax information.
Previously, Pennsylvania law required agencies to conduct enhanced criminal background checks every 10 years for employees who have access to federal tax information. Since then, the IRS has revised its standards and now requires these checks every 5 years.
House Bill 2187 would align Pennsylvania law with federal standards, ensure continued compliance, and protect vital state operations that depend on access to this data.
“If we fail to make this update, Pennsylvania could fall out of compliance with the federal standards that dictate access to federal tax information,” said Hill-Evans, chair of the State Government Committee. “Losing access to this data would jeopardize the ability of multiple state agencies to carry out their responsibilities.”
More than 10,000 Pennsylvania employees have responsibilities that involve access to federal tax information, and that access enables critical state functions, including tax administration and enforcement, child support enforcement, and certain welfare and program-integrity activities.
“As legislators, we have responsibility to protect sensitive taxpayer information while ensuring that the agencies entrusted with that information can continue to perform their duties effectively,” said Hill-Evans. “Updating our law to reflect the current federal standard is a necessary step in meeting that responsibility.”
H.B. 2187 now moves to the senate for further consideration.