Like Making Laws and Sausages, Maybe We'd Rather Not Know How IRS Cost/Benefit Calculations Work
Back in 2022 the drunken sailors in Congress in charge of spending our money gave the IRS an additional $80 billion to hire new agents in the audit division.
Their job?
Crack down on millionaires, billionaires, and large corporations that were allegedly cheating on their taxes.
This was a bold move for Joe Biden since this list sounds like Democratic Party donors.
Now the results are in and here’s what the taxpayer received in exchange for all this new money. The Washington Times reports, "The IRS has now clawed back $1.3 billion from the country’s wealthiest taxpayers using initiatives launched after President Biden won historic funding increases for the tax agency. . . .
"'The IRS had not had the resources to pursue these wealthy non-filers. Now, it does, and we’re making significant progress,' U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in remarks Friday in a speech in Texas.
"Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, who is now the Democrats’ nominee for president, have campaigned on promises to sweat more money out of the wealthy, arguing they cheat on their taxes at a disproportionate rate and, because of their incomes, it means large amounts of money the government never sees. . . .
"Ms. Yellen declared the IRS has now compelled nearly 80% of them to pay up, leading to $1.1 billion collected."
We'll be generous here and go with the larger number, $1.3 billion collected.
That means a little elementary math tells us the IRS spent $62.00 for every $1.00 in delinquent taxes it collected.
Only the federal government would think that was a cost/benefit ratio to trumpet in news releases.
Now you can make a strong case that tax enforcement is important, and making an example of wealthy tax-dodgers has more impact than going after dollar and discount store customers.
And within reason, we agree.
Taxes should be paid by everyone.
However, there is another class of Americans who should also be among the most scrupulous of taxpayers and in the forefront of compliance.
What’s more, those taxpayers should set an example for all of us every year.
Yet the IRS doesn’t show much interest in cracking down on this particular set of scofflaws.
Who are they?
Government employees, including IRS agents, of course!
What’s more, according to the Daily Wire.com, this set of cheaters owes more than the millionaires and billionaires: $1.5 billion.
Maybe remove the beam in your own eye? Just a suggestion . . .
The Washington Times again found, "According to the audit, 5% of the IRS’s workforce failed to pay their taxes in full and on time at some point while working for the agency. . . . 70 current employees were found to have intentionally cheated.
"Of those, only 20 were ousted. Most of the rest remain on the job after a short suspension. Under the law, all of them should have been fired unless they received a special exemption from the commissioner."
And even in those rare instances when a corrupt IRS employee is fired, all is not lost!
Getting back on the government gravy train is still possible. "The IRS also rehired nearly 400 former employees despite red flags in their files. . . . Hundreds more former employees were hired back as contractors despite red flags that included avoiding taxes, falsifying documents or theft."
Just curious.
How many readers have found that level of kindness, understanding, and forgiveness in dealing with the IRS when you make a mistake?
This is a scandal, but only to those of us on the outside of Big Government, looking in.
The Democratic Party certainly isn’t going to go after its government employee voter-base and the comb-over conservatives in Congress are too timid and/or too ineffective.
Sadly, our role is just to shut up and pay up.
Michael Reagan, the eldest son of President Reagan, is a Newsmax TV analyst. A syndicated columnist and author, he chairs The Reagan Legacy Foundation. Mr. Reagan is an in-demand speaker with Premiere Speaker's Bureau. Read Michael Reagan's Reports — More Here.
Michael R. Shannon is a commentator, researcher for the League of American Voters, and an award-winning political and advertising consultant with nationwide and international experience. He is author of "Conservative Christian's Guidebook for Living in Secular Times (Now With Added Humor!)" Read Michael Shannon's Reports — More Here.