IRS Audits More Wealthy Taxpayers

[Rose Siding]

WASHINGTON - The IRS increased its audits of wealthy taxpayers this year, helping the agency haul in a record $43 billion in unpaid taxes.

The tax collectors released the audit statistics with a prod at lawmakers to give the agency an extra $500 million the president requested for expanding efforts to track down tax evaders.

"What you have here is a pure budget squeeze," said IRS Commissioner Mark Everson. "We're the only part of the government that can help address the deficit by bringing in revenues."

He noted the $43 billion collected is more than four times the agency's $10.2 billion budget.
............
"Overall, these audit rates, while we've made progress, are still too low," Everson said. "We have more work to do."

Many of the additional individual audits were conducted by mail, a tool used for simpler cases than need less time to resolve. The IRS conducted more traditional face-to-face audits of high-income taxpayers, while lower income taxpayers saw those audits drop.

The IRS said face-to-face audits of high-income taxpayers yielded an average $27,600 tax collection. The more efficient mail audits netted an average collection of $15,110.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=513&ncid=691&e=4&u=/ap/20041118/ap_on_go_ot/irs_audits

[Pachamama]

1. Gee, I wonder what the political affiliation of those audited people were?

:eyes:

Who wants to place bets that many of "us dems and progressives", regardless of income are next?

Heck, they could just go down the public info sheets showing folks that donated to Kerry and the DNC....

[clydefrand]

5. Well, it says, "wealthy" people are being audited. I'm not

among them. Wish I were, hmmmmmmmmm, might feel good.

[Pachamama]

8. Well, I will qualify but my point was that they might just start auditing

dems and anyone that has given $250 or more to a candidate or party has to have that info disclosed publicly....I live in an area where a lot of folks qualify....just go to http://www.fundsrace.org and type in zip code 94904 - you'll see a lot of blue and a lot of folks who have given a lot of money....

[clydefrand]

2. Why, oh, why can't they post a list of all the tax evaders?

Not that "I" know any of the rich people, but maybe other rich people would recognize them and think maybe, just maybe they should stop evading also. Why aren't they being sent to prison for tax evasion? Leona! Ask for equal time! Where are you when we need you?

[The Backlash Cometh]

3. Praise Jeeezus! We have prayed and the Lord has spoken!

[clydefrand]

6. Let's continue the praying so he'll speak even more!

And louder!

[Tempest]

4. Window dressing

IRS audits of wealthy Americans plummeted during Boosh's first term.

[Tempest]

7. Corporate audits down 26% under Boosh

Despite dwindling revenues from corporate taxes during the Bush administration, "America's largest corporations are less likely to face an IRS audit this year than at any time in the past decade." Over the last four years "audits of Despite dwindling revenues from corporate taxes during the Bush administration, "America's largest corporations are less likely to face an IRS audit this year than at any time in the past decade." Over the last four years "audits of corporation have fallen 26%." Meanwhile, over the same time period, "audits of individual tax returns have climbed 37%." The result is "not only unfair to average taxpayers, but is costly to the government because corporate audits tend to recover far more money than individual audits."

www.americanprogress.org

[pelagius]

9. It has been a priority to audit low-income taxpayers...

...to be certain they weren't improperly claiming the Earned Income Credit (EIC), a credit that rebates taxes to the working poor. This policy was only abandoned in the last two years or so.

In fact, the odds that you would get audited were higher if you made <$30K a year than >$100K.

This was the priority set by the (Republican) Congress, not the IRS.

[papau]

10. Get real - why can't they focus on the really rich and corporate?

they seem to be defining high income as over 200,000 in income -so the average might make sense as 43 b over say 10k collected each on audit is about 4 million folks.


The IRS should assign a 3 person team to each of the 13000 wealthiest families and collect the minimum 1 million per year that each of those families set aside for the "expected" audit loss

In my working days if I did not hide or defer more than a few million each year, I would have lost the client.

Granted it is only $13 billion -minimum - that should be collected on audit from these wealthy families - but I would feel better.

Good grief - my clients were told to expect to pay these sized amounts - and to be happy because that would be 30% to 50% of what a different presentation of their income would have had them paying!

[TahitiNut]

14. Because those 'taxpayers' can afford lawyers.

As one who was audited more than once (and SCREWED once), I can assure you that Pat Q. Public has a snowball's chance in Hell of prevailing against an arrogant IRS 'Auditor' (typically just a tenured employee with little or no education in accounting or auditing). The difference in attitudes between IRS Regions is enormous! Treated wrongly in one region, I was reviewed after I relocated to another region and my remaining amounts 'owed' were eradicated. Despite the FACT that I had a very good tax attorney (who was also a CPA) who handled my case and confirmed that I was absolutely in the right, the IRS ruled against me. His advice was to pay, since his fees and the fees to appeal would cost too much. (He had a former long-time IRS Auditor on staff who confirmed the wholly arbitrary habits of the IRS in that region.)


One of the things the IRS NEVER discloses is how much taxpayers pay over and above what they would rightfully owe in taxes if they took the time and trouble to keep records and file a thorough return. In the 'under $100K/year' strata, the amounts are probably enormous - probably dwarfing the underpayments. I say this even with the appreciation that plenty of people (20% or so?) probably "pad" their Itemized Deductions.

[oddtext]

11. GOODBYE commonist AH R eSS! n/t

[Name removed]

12. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[papau]

13. Avoid the above site - does not pass my virus inspection software!

Besides the DOL site gives all the info one needs to prove that the rich get off with about the same tax rate as the poor (using the two FITs we have - namely payroll tax and FIT)