Hines v. Internal Revenue Service

• Court: District Court, District of Columbia
• Decided: March 23, 2023
• Docket: Civil Action No. 2023-0727
• Status: Published

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

DASHON HINES, ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) v. ) Civil Action No. 23-00727 (UNA) ) ) INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE, ) ) Defendant. )

MEMORANDUM OPINION

This matter is before the Court on its initial review of Plaintiff’s pro se complaint and

application for leave to proceed in forma pauperis. The Court will grant the application and

dismiss the complaint for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(h)(3)

(requiring the court to dismiss an action “at any time” it determines that subject-matter jurisdiction

is wanting).

A party seeking relief in the district court must plead facts that bring the suit within the

court’s jurisdiction. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 8(a). Plaintiff alleges only that on March 8, 2023, the

Internal Revenue Service (IRS) violated the tax code when it issued him “a tax return payment in

the amount of $42.” Complaint, ECF No. 1 at 4. He alleges no injury but seeks $1 million in

damages. Id.

The United States, of which the IRS is a part, may be sued only upon consent. United

States v. Mitchell, 445 U.S. 535, 538 (1980) (citation omitted). A waiver of the United States’

immunity “must be unequivocally expressed in statutory text, and [it cannot] be implied.” Lane v.

Pena, 518 U.S. 187, 192 (1996) (citations omitted). Plaintiff has not invoked a statute waiving the

1 government’s immunity, which alone compels dismissal. Regardless, the Federal Tort Claims Act,

28 U.S.C. §§ 2671-80, waives the United States’ immunity with respect to certain claims for

money damages but explicitly immunizes the United States from “[a]ny claim arising in respect of

the assessment or collection of any tax[.]” 28 U.S.C. § 2680(c). In addition, the Taxpayer Bill of

Rights, 26 U.S.C. § 7433, provides a damages remedy against the United States, but only in

situations “in which the IRS has taken an affirmative step to recover taxes owed to the

government.” Ivy v. Comm'r of Internal Revenue Serv., 877 F.3d 1048, 1050 (D.C. Cir. 2017)

(cleaned up). Here, the complaint fails to allege facts sufficient to invoke the waiver of sovereign

immunity contained in § 2680(c) or to state a claim under § 7433 or any other statute.

The Court will, accordingly, dismiss the action for lack of jurisdiction and failure to state

a claim.

A separate order will issue.

_________/s/_____________ RANDOLPH D. MOSS Date: March 23, 2023 United States District Judge