About 1,000 "taxpayers" making over $1 million a year failed to even file returns at least once, 2017-2021.

The IRS estimates 1 trillion dollars in uncollected tax revenue each year due to a lack of resources to properly audit (mostly wealthy) tax cheaters.

I understand Tom wants to change the topic away from bad policy he supports regarding staff cuts at the IRS because that's what Tom does.    but that's really an eye opening stat.     You could balance our budget next year without raising taxes or cutting spending.   Just force people to follow existing tax laws.      Low hanging fruit unless you believe in the Deep State boogeyman bullshit.

Hey Jerry, is it dark there in tom's ass?

Of course, Tylenol theft at Walgreens is just a placeholder for all kinds of organized retail theft. I like to cite Walgreens because that's the business that admitted to stealing $4 million in wages from their workers, complained about shoplifting, and then their CFO admitted on an earnings call that they had lied about the amount of shoplifting.

Good placeholder, huh? Sleazy company, right? Your kind of place?

But of course, I'm concerned about organized crime shoplifting AND about tax evasion by top earners. That makes me a better person than you and tom - low bar I know.

No wonder you two are so...close.

Huh??? What does anything stupid Tommie-poo bleated about have to do with funding the IRS???

Oh, fuck, I read one of the idiot's posts. Never mind.

As to your statement, IRS agents don't help people fill out tax returns. Professional tax preparers do that. IRS agents enforce the tax code. People who don't pay their taxes fail to do so, not because the tax code is too complicated, but because...they don't wanna pay them. That would still happen, and happen just as often, if a Form 1040 had three lines on it.

If one is bothered by the complexity of the tax system, then, as stated, that person must pay a professional tax preparer.  What simplifications would posters here suggest?  I'd be interested to know.  Would they apply to the average Jane or Joe?  Or just for the very wealthy or those with complex property/business dealings?  

Candy

To their credit - The Trump administration did simplify the tax process for most Americans.    Thats not to say they lowered their  taxes in any significant way- but its truthful to say the overwhelming majority of Americans now use the standard deduction instead of itemizing.   So thats simpler for them.    Not a bad thing.

The tax cheaters arent middle class Americans.  In fact, its almost impossible to cheat on your taxes if you are a middle class American because almost all of your income is automatically reported to the IRS.     The billionaire class is a different story...as are businesses.  They have all kinds of income, real estate, earned interest, receipts, expenses, trusts, LLC's, and foreign investments that largely get reported by the honor system unless they are audited.    This is the group that gets away with a trillion dollars of theft every year.

Republicans protect the cheaters them by telling the general public that any increased IRS funding will go to shaking down the middle class which is completely bogus (see my earlier point).      Keep that in mind next time you hear about "weaponization of the IRS" from your friendly, neighborhood GOP candidate.

The IRS estimates 1 trillion dollars in uncollected tax revenue each year due to a lack of resources to properly audit (mostly wealthy) tax cheaters

A claim by the agency that benefits by claiming an exorbitant number with no basis in fact.

One more time with IRS data

The top 1 percent’s income share rose from 20.1 percent in 2019 to 22.2 percent in 2020 and its share of federal income taxes paid rose from 38.8 percent to 42.3 percent.

US personal income is $22.8T, so the top 1% earn $4.8T.  So according to the IRS, 21% of income goes unreported; kind of hard to hide that much money.  

More IRS data, there are 1,150,000 households in the top 1% and there are 35,000 investigative agents or 33 households per agent.  Looks like the IRS is not utilizing their agents

Thats not to say they lowered their taxes in any significant way-

Actually they had their taxes lowered.  Those that were not paying taxes; can't have their taxes lowered.

An estimated 72.5 million households -- or 40% of total households -- will pay no federal income taxes for tax year 2022

Want a simplified system - do a VAT tax.  People would no longer have to file & the emphasis would be on companies who have to report their revenue anyway.  Due to the technology today unless one has a cash business it is difficult to hide revenue.

But people wouldn't be happy with a sales tax rate north of 25%

In the same post Tom says the IRS is not credible  - and then goes on to cite data from the IRS.    

My IQ isnt low enough to engage.

And a VAT tax instead of income tax?   People who live paycheck to paycheck spending all of their income would be taxed at 25%.    People who hoard 95% of their income like Jeff Bezos would only get taxes on the 5% they buy stuff with.    If you think the current system screws over the middle class in favor of the wealthy - Tom's idea would be  100 times worse.

I'd suggest reconsideration of a flat tax system, but that's perhaps too archaic and / or considered punitive for most of you here.  Such a system has also been rejected for 40 years or more from a federal perspective, though there are 9 states that currently employ this sytem for state taxation. Saying it in public circles nowadays kinda resembles those Aflac insurance commercials starring a talking goose " Flat Tax.. Flat Tax ..Flat Tax ". AKA Steve Forbes.

Maybe the largest gain / most appeal from a flat tax system would be  simplification of the tax code.  The current progressive ( or income - graduated) system  that we routinely use seems to be preferred by most Americans and the federal legislatures. Obviously, the tax code infiltrates/ affects  all types of monetary transactions, business interactions..and way beyond ( including elections). . There's yet another argument about how many pages the current guide contains ( is it 9,000 or 70, 000 pages ? Do those alternate numbers include the complex  IRS codes or not?). Regardless of how many words / pages it's considered too complex  and verbose. Besides, all the tax specialization lawyers and CPA's need something to do when they're not on the golf course.

Regardless, whatever system we employ there are going to be potential taxpayers who attempt to bilk/ avoid payment in some form or fashion. It's commonplace..almost human nature and most of the top earners employ a bevy of lawyers to babysit them. Those who cheat should be prosecuted. Still, the top income group/s  continue to pay a high proportion of the total US tax revenues collected every year / decade / century. That's a fact and I suspect that's one reason why wide-scale changes in the current federal tax system are always resisted. Pick your poison / loophole / deduction.

In the same post Tom says the IRS is not credible - and then goes on to cite data from the IRS. My IQ isnt low enough to engage

The difference is that the IRS made a self serving statement with no basis in fact; I quoted actual IRS data.  Pj's IQ isn't high enough to understand

I'd suggest reconsideration of a flat tax system, but that's perhaps too archaic and / or considered punitive for most of you here.

A flat tax with a higher std deduction, combined with adjustments for mortgage interest and pension deductions.  Business pays a VAT tax.