The IRS is under fire for a six-minute "Star Trek" parody video it produced for the opening of a 2010 training and leadership conference.
CBS News, which obtained the video under a Freedom of Information Act request, reported that the "Star Trek" parody and another training video parodying "Gilligan's Island" together cost about $60,000.
IRS Acting Commissioner Steven Miller defended the videos, saying they save the IRS $1.5 million each year in in-person training costs. But the IRS also released a statement to CBS, saying that the video would not be something the agency would produce today.
"The space parody video from 2010 is not reflective of overall IRS video efforts, which provide critical information to taxpayers and cost-effective employee training critical to running the nation's tax system. In addition, the IRS has instituted tough new standards for videos to prevent situations similar to the 2010 video," the IRS' statement reads.
The video features an elaborate recreation of "Star Trek" themes and characters, including an employee playing Mr. Spock who is adorned with fake hair and large ears.
Rep. Charles Boustany, Jr. (R-La.), the chair of the House Ways and Means Committee, had requested the video, which the IRS originally refused to turn over. In a statement, Boustany blasted the IRS for a "frivolous" use of taxpayer dollars.
"There is nothing more infuriating to a taxpayer than to find out the government is using their hard-earned dollars in a way that is frivolous," Boustany said. "The IRS admitted as much when it disclosed that it no longer produces such videos."
Watch the full IRS video below, via CBS:
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