Rep. Jason Smith, R-Mo., speaks during a House Oversight and Accountability Committee impeachment inquiry hearing on Sept. 28, 2023. Jonathan Ernst | ReutersHouse Republicans are pressing the IRS for answers after the agency paused processing new claims for a pandemic-era small business tax break. Lawmakers voiced "continued concerns" about the employee retention credit, or ERC, which was enacted to support small businesses during the Covid-19 pandemic. The backlog of unprocessed ERC claimsAs of Sept. 27, the total inventory of unprocessed Forms 941-X, used to amend an employer's quarterly federal tax returns, was roughly 779,000, according to the IRS. However, the ERC claim backlog may be significantly higher due to professional employer organizations, or PEOs, which provide payroll benefits and other HR services.

---

Persons: Jason Smith, Jonathan Ernst, David Schweikert, Pat Cleary Organizations: Reuters, Republicans, ERC, IRS, National Association of Professional Locations: Worth