{"id":8898,"date":"2022-09-19T15:08:45","date_gmt":"2022-09-19T15:08:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lonecandle.com\/?p=8898"},"modified":"2022-09-19T15:08:45","modified_gmt":"2022-09-19T15:08:45","slug":"dont-believe-the-white-houses-promises-about-who-the-new-irs-will-audit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lonecandle.com\/?p=8898","title":{"rendered":"Don’t Believe the White House’s Promises About Who the New IRS Will Audit"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\n\n“”Contrary to the misinformation from opponents of this legislation,” Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen wrote in a letter<\/a> to IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig Wednesday, “small business or households earning $400,000 per year or less will not see an increase in the chances that they are audited.” Rettig had echoed the language of his boss in a letter of attempted reassurance<\/a> to the Senate on August 4, albeit with more wiggle room (italicized):<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“These resources are absolutely not about<\/em> increasing audit scrutiny on small businesses or middle-income Americans. As we’ve been planning, our investment of these enforcement resources is designed around<\/em> the Department of the Treasury’s directive that audit rates will not rise relative to recent years<\/em> for households making under $400,000.””<\/p>\n\n\n\n

…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“none of these assurances live in the text of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) itself<\/a>. One Republican amendment<\/a> “to prevent the use of additional Internal Revenue Service Funds from being used for audits of taxpayers with taxable incomes below $400,000″ was voted down on party lines. You’ll just have to take Democrats’ word for it.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“In a September 2021 letter<\/a>, CBO Director Phillip L. Swagel estimated that boosting IRS funding by $80 billion would increase tax revenues by $200 billion (the number would later rise to $207 billion<\/a>, before settling at $204 billion<\/a>), adding that “the proposal\u2026would return audit rates to the levels of about 10 years ago; the rate would rise for all taxpayers<\/em>” (italics mine), though “higher-income taxpayers would face the largest increase.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This remains the CBO prediction, which otherwise Democrats are happy to tout for the $204 billion revenue increase and $124 billion net reduction to the deficit ($204 billion minus the $80 billion cost).” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The “tax gap” that the IRS seeks to close includes large amounts from the under-$400,000 club<\/strong>.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Don’t Believe the White House’s Promises About Who the New IRS Will Audit<\/a><\/blockquote>