Friday, May 6, 2011

Equality In Taxation

Very timely data from the IRS shows that a new agency program to investigate how well or poorly high wealth individuals are complying with the nation's tax laws has gotten off to a very slow start.

The program and the creation of a whole new group to implement it was announced by Commissioner Douglas Shulman in a series of speeches beginning in the fall of 2009. But based on month-to-month internal agency reports obtained by TRAC under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), the Global High Wealth Industry Group (GHWIG) through the end of last month has only audited 13 returns during the previous year and a half. Because a single taxpayer at this level frequently will file different kinds of returns, the number of individuals who so far have been targeted is almost certainly very small.

Despite Shulman's speeches, other information obtained by TRAC further shows that as of last October only 78 agents had been assigned to the GHWIG. To see the report, go to
http://trac.syr.edu/tracirs/newfindings/current/

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