If allowed to reach its full stride, Direct File was estimated to save about $11 billion per year for taxpayers (an average of $160 per user) and help unlock about $12 billion in government benefits (Zucker and Ramamurti 2024). Despite these successes, the future of Direct File under the Trump administration was uncertain. By the spring of 2025 it was clear the product would be eliminated, with an official announcement ending the project in November.

To preserve the lessons from this ambitious project, BGL interviewed 20 individuals who worked on Direct File. The interviewees ranged from public figures, such as Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel who agreed to be identified by name, to engineers and designers who worked directly on the product. Interviewees were asked about their involvement and history with Direct File, the main success factors and barriers they faced, the legacy and lessons of Direct File, and the contrast with the goals of the new administration. 

Read select transcripts from our interview archive here.

Direct File Survey Feedback

Get a glimpse into how members of the public responded to Direct File:

• Responses to 4 open-ended comments from the 2024 Direct File Touchpoints survey,

• Survey data received from the 2025 Direct File survey, data through April 7, 2025

IRS Reports

• 2023 IRS Report to Congress

• 2024 IRS Direct File Pilot Program Report

• 2025 IRS Direct File Report

Supported By

This work was supported by Technology and Public Policy at Georgetown University, the Institution for Social and Policy Studies at Yale University, the Digital Harbor Foundation, and the Guggenheim Foundation and the Accountability and Reform Research Consortium.