A side door to Trump’s tax returns?

Lawmakers have proposed several ways that the state could compel their release

State lawmakers are pursuing multiple avenues to compel the release of President Donald J. Trump’s tax returns, noting that he is the only modern president to refuse to release the documents.

Sen. Brad Hoylman, D-manhattan, introduced legislation on Monday authorizing the state Department of Taxation and Finance to share tax return information with a congressional committee.

Federal law gives three congressional committees the power to obtain, inspect and disclose the otherwise confidential federal tax information of any taxpayer from the U.S. Department of Treasury.

Under state law, the release of state tax returns is largely prohibited.

Hoylman’s bill, which has the endorsement of U.S. House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler, would create a new exception to the rule and authorize the sharing of state tax returns with a congressional committee when the request is made in the furtherance of a legitimate legislative purpose.

“This new bill will permit New York state to comply with requests from congressional investigative committees and help ensure Congress can’t be blocked in their attempts to hold even the highest elected officials in the land accountable to the American people,” Hoylman said.

Previous versions of the legislation drew criticism for being too broad and infringing on the privacy of New York taxpayers. The latest version narrows the criteria for permitting the release of tax returns.

Last week, the House Ways and Means Committee requested copies of Trump’s tax returns under its authority pursuant to federal law. Attorneys for the administration have indicated that they will fight the request.

Another bill introduced in January by Hoylman and Assemblyman David Buchwald, D-westchester, would require the disclosure of tax returns by statewide elected public officials, which would include U.S. senators and the president and vice president.

More than 25 states have introduced similar bills, which would require presidential candidates to release their returns to appear on the 2020 ballot, but the measures have run into constitutional issues.

A third bill, also sponsored by Hoylman and Buchwald, would require the state Department of Taxation and Finance to release five years of income tax returns for eight office-holders, including the president, vice president, U.S. senators, and other statewide office holders, including the governor.

Trump has claimed that an ongoing audit by the Internal Revenue Service has prompted him, on the advice of counsel, not to release his tax returns.

State Republican Party Chairman Ed Cox slammed the measure on Monday, accusing state Democrats of having “Trump Derangement Syndrome.”

“No matter how they dress it up for legal purposes, this unconstitutional bill of attainder is aimed at one individual for the political purpose of relitigating the 2016 election,” Cox said. “The bill would set a dangerous precedent for infringing on the privacy rights of all citizens.”