Will the Trump administration investigate the tax return leak?

A federal watchdog with oversight of the IRS could not provide information Wednesday about whether it is investigating the leak of President Trump’s 2005 tax returns, citing federal confidentiality laws.

The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) “reviews all allegations of unauthorized disclosure of confidential tax information brought to our attention,” a TIGTA spokeswoman said.

“Federal confidentiality law, including Section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code, prohibits us from disclosing any information concerning our review of such allegations,” she added.

A portion of Trump’s federal tax returns for 2005 were published Tuesday by DCReport.org and on MSBC’s “The Rachel Maddow Show” after they were mailed to journalist David Cay Johnston. The returns showed Trump had income of $150 million that year and paid about $38 million in taxes.

It is not known who provided the documents to Johnston. Under section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code, it is illegal for government employees and others to make unauthorized disclosures of tax-return information.

Trump’s tax returns could have come from sources outside the government, as he often had to provide them to state regulators, courts and banks during his business career.

TIGTA is located in the Treasury Department and is independent from other Treasury offices, but could be directed to investigate a specific allegation by the White House or another agency. The head of TIGTA was appointed by then-President George W. Bush.

The IRS, whose head was appointed by then-President Obama, did not have any public comment about the leak of Trump’s 2005 tax returns as of early Wednesday afternoon. IRS employees are barred from talking about specific taxpayers’ tax returns.

A spokesperson for the Department of Justice declined to comment.