The U.S. Treasury has terminated all 31 contracts with Booz Allen Hamilton after a former contractor, Charles Edward Littlejohn, was sentenced to five years for leaking tax records — including President Trump’s — to The New York Times and ProPublica. Prosecutors say the 2018–2020 disclosures were unprecedented and that Littlejohn sought a contractor role to access sensitive returns while avoiding detection. Treasury cited failures to protect taxpayer data across contracts worth roughly $4.8 million annually and $21 million in total obligations. Booz Allen says it cooperated with investigators and does not store taxpayer records on its own systems.
U.S. Treasury Cuts All Contracts With Booz Allen After Contractor Leaked Trump Tax Records
FILE - A sign is displayed outside the Internal Revenue Service building May 4, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Treasury Department has terminated its contracts with Booz Allen Hamilton after a former contractor tied to the firm was convicted and sentenced for leaking confidential tax records, including those belonging to President Donald Trump.
What Happened
In 2024, Charles Edward Littlejohn, a former IRS contractor who worked through Booz Allen Hamilton, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to five years in prison for providing tax data to The New York Times and ProPublica. Prosecutors say the disclosures, made between 2018 and 2020, involved records covering thousands of wealthy Americans and were "unparalleled in the IRS’s history." Court filings allege Littlejohn obtained a contractor role in part to access Trump’s tax returns and learned how to query and extract data while avoiding internal detection.
Treasury Response
The Treasury said it has 31 contracts with Booz Allen Hamilton, totaling about $4.8 million in annual spending and $21 million in total obligations, and moved to end those agreements after concluding the firm had not implemented adequate safeguards. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the company "failed to implement adequate safeguards to protect sensitive data, including the confidential taxpayer information it had access to through its contracts with the Internal Revenue Service."
Scott Bessent, Treasury Secretary: "The firm failed to implement adequate safeguards to protect sensitive data, including the confidential taxpayer information it had access to through its contracts with the Internal Revenue Service."
Booz Allen's Statement
A Booz Allen spokesperson, Brian P. Hale, said the firm "consistently condemned" Littlejohn's actions, cooperated fully with investigators, and has "zero tolerance for violations of the law." Hale added that the company does not store taxpayer data on its own systems and cannot monitor activity on federal networks. Booz Allen said it looks forward to continuing discussions with Treasury about the matter.
Context
Officials described the contract terminations as consistent with actions by the Trump administration toward entities viewed as adversaries of the president and his allies. The developments close a federal procurement relationship while investigations and legal consequences stemming from the leaks continue to draw attention to contractor access and data security at federal agencies.
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