As Democrats retake power in the House of Representatives for the first time since 2011, one of the party's first priorities will be to send a message to President Donald Trump about his tax returns.
Sources tell CNN that Democrats plan on including a provision in the House's first bill, H.R. 1, that would require presidential nominees to disclose 10 years of tax returns shortly after becoming their party's official nominee. The forms would then be posted to the Federal Election Commission's website where the public would be able to view them for themselves.
Vice Presidential candidates would also be required to disclose their returns, according to the report.
The provision is set to be included in H.R. 1, a bill that seeks to make several major ethics changes to how the government works, as well as lay out the priorities Democrats have for the next two years on issues like voting rights and health care.
Because Republicans still control the Senate, the bill is not expected to pass or ever make it to Trump's desk to be signed.
Despite the fact the bill isn't likely to become law, Democrats aren't giving up hope on obtaining Trump's tax returns. Thanks to an obscure IRS rule, Democrats say the incoming chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, Rep. Richard Neal (D-MA) has the power to summon the president's returns from the Treasury Department. Neal has said in the past he plans on asking for them after the new congress is seated, but a timeline on when that motion might be made has not been released.
Trump has repeatedly said he won't release his tax returns because he's currently being audited by the IRS, however, experts say being under IRS audit does not prevent anyone from disclosing their tax returns.
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